


Sheith Soft Week

by Akemichan



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Crossover, Fluff, M/M, Mention of abuse, Mention of blood, Mostly Fluff, Not Canon Compliant, collection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-17
Updated: 2019-03-17
Packaged: 2019-11-19 09:10:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,538
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18133775
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akemichan/pseuds/Akemichan
Summary: Collection of stories for the Sheith Soft Week1 - Home2 - Milestone3 - Animal!AU4 - Family5 - Free Day (Kitbull crossover)





	1. Home

Shiro finds out about the selling much later.

He hasn’t return on Earth for like six months, being around the Vegas Galaxia for the IGF Atlas Space Exploration program and the city changes everything in the meantime. It expands in the desert with its street and its skyline, and Keith’s old shaks doesn’t exist anymore. It looks like it never exists, as if no stories connected to it exist.

Sometimes Shiro wonders if even Keith is just a creation of his own mind.

But Keith is there, is real, and even if they can’t stay together much, is with Shiro.

 

“Yes, I know. I sold it some time ago.”

Keith’s answer is short, distracted. The entire situation around his former house is no more than a mundane matter for him.

“Oh.”

“They called me,” Keith adds, and Shiro knows it’s more for his own benefit. “They wanted do expand the city and I had no reason to say no. They even send me back the objects and furniture inside.”

A small smile appears on his lips. Shiro is sure: within that object, there is his old research about the energy, the one that lends them to the Blue Lion.

“We pay for a new expedition into the Third Quadrant with that money.”

“But you don’t have a house anymore.”

Shiro’s reaction is unexpected. He doesn’t have a house anymore too. Well, he inherits his Grandfather’s house, back in Japan, but he hasn’t gone there in more than ten years. He isn’t even sure the war didn’t destroy it. Shiro has good memories of it, he just wasn’t expecting to come back. He expects to create a new one, and now he lives on the Atlas, connected to Atlas.

“I have,” Keith replies. Another surprise.

“Have you?”

“Yes?”

“Where?”

“In the best place in the entire universe.”

Shiro frowns, a small wrinkle between his eyebrows.

“Daibaazal?”

Keith chuckles. “No.”

Shiro is lost. The entire space is their house, since Keith lives most of the time around the universe from his humanitarian projects. Shiro doesn’t remember quite a place Keith will consider superior. Lance and Allura and Coran have Altea, Hunk has Balmera, Pidge had Olkarion. And Shiro? He doesn’t have an answer not even for himself.

“Tell me,” he dares to say and hopefully, hopefully, Keith won’t get offended.

He doesn’t.

“It’s wherever you are, Shiro.”

 

It’s not like they don’t have a place to stay. Shiro has his own quarter on the Atlas and it’s big enough to be a small flat; Keith spends his time there when they manage to organize a meeting. It happens sometimes that the routes of the Blade and Atlas meet, and so does their leaders.

But being on the Atlas isn’t the most convenient solution. Once Lance joked about Shiro being the king of his own moving castle, white hair and everything. Despite the bad pun, he isn’t entirely wrong. Shiro loves his work, and that means he never gets holidays.

Sometimes, they land on the nearest planet and take a room there. It’s nice to wandering around, exploring, as they dreamt back then at the Garrison. It’s their free time.

Still, Shiro decides, he wants a place only for the two of them.

They won’t get married. Probably. Shiro never asks, and Keith seems fine with it. Their works are too much important and none of them will ask the other to give up. Maybe, one day, when they’ll be old, they’ll settle down somewhere, with ten cats and a space wolf as companies.

For now, they’re just two people that love each other very much. Shiro just wants a place for this.

 

They call themselves Mirimians, and they say they come from Mirim, the planet.

No one lives on that planet. It lost its atmosphere decades ago, and now Mirim is reduced as a desert, with acid oceans and burned rocks. The Mirimians are strong people, very loyal to their home planet. They still live around it, in space ships that their own star nourishes as once it did with their planet.

The space ships are so advanced they basically look like a city, but in space: there are bigger ships with shops, cinemas, schools, big ship for flats, and smaller ships one after another that are independent houses. They also move as they are small planets, guaranteed the regular lifestyle. Shiro has been there once, as Earth Ambassador.

When he calls for a house, they hurry to find one for him.

He doesn’t tell Keith, not until the entire procedure ends.

 

“Mirimians are nice,” Keith says. “They have a voice in their balance sheet especially for humanitarian reason and, since they are in the Voltron Coalition, they devolve it entirely to the Marmora Project.”

“Good for you.”

Keith nods. “They are mostly untouched by the Galra War, still they want to help as much as they can.”

Shiro is there, nervous like a boy at the prom party. He doesn’t even know what he wants. Approval? He already has it. He just looks at Keith wandering in the room of the house and can’t help but be happy. This is what he wants, or at least he thinks it is.

“This is a nice house,” Keith says, once he finished his tour. “Do you plan to buy it?”

“I did already.”

The silence stretches between them. Keith’s head is tilted on the side, as he waits. Shiro knows he owes him an explanation, yet he is hesitant.

“I wanted a place for the two of us.”

There is a smile on Keith’s face, just a little, before it disappears into Keith lowering down his head.

Shiro can’t say when Keith ends up hugging him, his head deeply buried in his chest. It just happens and at that moment, Shiro feels all his being relaxes.

This is what he wants. Not really a place to call home, but a place to be with Keith as they are the only one of the universe. This is the last part of his life, and the last part of his happiness.

When Keith speaks, his voice is rasp, as he is on tears.

“Can I buy the furniture?”

 

Keith’s hands are dirty with paint and sauce. He’s laughing at something Shiro said and now doesn’t even remember. What he wants to remember is the two of them, sitting on a dirty sheet, eating mirmirians food from a pack, with the smell of fresh paint in the nostrils.

Creating a house is such a mundane thing to do. Deciding the color of the wall, of the curtains, of the furniture, the way they want to organize the kitchen, the dining room, the bedroom. They order glasses and dishes, and even towels. Light blue for the wall, white and black for the dining room. Red covers for the bed. They spend days and tons of messages before deciding.

Pidge knows a lot of good engineers that could help for the house, but they refused. They create their own house, just the two of them. It takes time, because they don’t have much time, but each day they are together in this project is a treasured one.

Keith licks his fingers and examines the blue stains on his palm.

“We should have hired a painter,” he says.

“We should,” Shiro confirms.

They shouldn’t, and they hadn’t. This is all theirs.

 

The ceiling of the bedroom is made of glass.

During the day, the room has enough natural light thanks to the near star. It’s during the night that Keith and Shiro can look up and see the sky and the star around them. They love it. There are times where they stay there, in bed (it was a futon before) all naked, curled around one another.

The constellations aren’t the same you can see on Earth, but it doesn’t matter. Shiro studied all of them, he loves it. What it matters is the feeling, the time and time again they spend together looking at the sky the dreamt to reach once and they are a part of now.

Shiro studies Keith’s profile, chin up and a soft smile on his lips as, with his finger, he points out a star.

“Are you unsatisfied?” Shiro asks, once.

“About what?” he replies.

“This. The house.” Shiro looks at the space outside the ceiling. “Your idea of home is a little more… abstract than this.”

Keith crawls nearer, arms around Shiro’s chest, legs wrapped around the other’s, head placed against Shiro’s shoulder.

“I love this,” he says. “We built it. It’s like our little special hideout. But,” he adds, “it won’t be home without you.”

Shiro’s hand finds his way through Keith’s air, as he tilts his head a little to brush Keith’s cheek.

They never come in the house alone. It’s a place for the two of them, together.

“It won’t be without me.”


	2. Milestone

For his wedding proposal, Lance hired the MFE Pilots to write down a love poem for Allura in the sky. Then, he had a choir of Altean children sing a love song and Red herself bringing the ring for Allura. People speak about that for weeks, it became almost a legend in the planet around Altea.

Shiro isn’t so dramatic. It doesn’t mean he doesn’t want his proposal to be something special too.

Things between him and Keith are good. Wonderful, even. Despite the time both of them spend in space for their work and their missions, their relationship is working. It feels natural and even if they miss each other greatly, the time they spend together compensate for everything.

It’s natural that Shiro ends up thinking about a wedding. Something simple, just because he wants to make his love official for everyone. He has no idea how to tell Keith, though. Keith seems content with everything they have; sometimes, he expresses loud that he can’t believe they actually have that and Shiro is sure he won’t ask for more.

“Just invite him out for dinner,” Hunk suggests Shiro one day. “Keith is a blunt one, he doesn’t go for complicated things. I’m pretty sure he will be happy enough for the proposal alone.”

Not having better ideas (he definitely won’t follow any Galra traditions on it, nor Alteans), Shiro decides to follow Hunk’s advice. He makes a reservation in the fancy restaurant in town (five-stars and everything), plans an aphrodisiac menu, and asks the restaurant manager about a special dessert with the wedding proposal on it. And he invites Keith at his first free evening.

He doesn’t tell him it’s a special occasion, because it will ruin the surprise, so Keith arrives with his jeans and his leather jacket, not branded hair but kept into a low ponytail. It’s a definite contrast to Shiro’s suit and even Keith looks embarrassed once he notices he’s the only one without a suit in the entire restaurant.

“I didn’t know there is a dress code here,” Keith says.

“There isn’t,” Shiro reassures him. “And you look fine with it, don’t worry.”

Keith blushes a little and smiles. “Thanks. You too.”

The waiter that welcomes them doesn’t make any impression at Keith’s clothes, and that put him ease, much for Shiro’s relief. Their table is on a private corner, not enough for people not to notice them (Shiro’s face is still pretty popular on Earth), but enough to not have the entire attention on them.

“What about the list?”

“I ordered their special menu,” Shiro explains. “This restaurant… it’s specialized in nouvelle cousin or something like that, so for the first time I guess it’s better to try their offer. I gave a look at the name of the dishes and it’s impossible to understand what they are.”

It isn’t even a lie. Keith shrugs.

“It can’t be worse than Altean food, can it?”

It isn’t. It’s just… smaller. Small. Even for an appetizer. They serve a big round plate with a two centimeters slice of bread with some sauce and olive and fish on it. Keith blinks at it, he looks around and then takes it with his hand, examining it perplex.

“At least is good,” Shiro says, after eating it. Then, he tries to make his best gastronomic critic he can manage, “The bread is perfectly toasted, crispy at the right point; spicy sauce, it goes well with the olive but it doesn’t hide the taste of the fish, which is the last thing that remains in your mouth.”

“What kind of fish?” Keith asks.

“I have no idea.”

Keith laughs. He eats his piece too and snorts. “Sorry, I’m not as much poetic as you. Too small to enjoy any taste.”

The rest of the dinner isn’t much different, and at a certain point, when they serve them a grilled fish that could come off from a house doll, giving his size, Shiro has no ideas anymore to entertain Keith as they eat. Keith doesn’t seem annoyed by the entire dinner, more amused that people consider it a great restaurant, but for Shiro this could be a disaster.

“Do you remember, Shiro, the time you bring me in that awful restaurant for your wedding proposal?”

Absolutely no, Shiro _isn’t_ going to have that as a memory.

His brain is still thinking about something funny to lift the mood, when Keith speaks. He doesn’t look at Shiro, just playing with the small grilled fish with his fork.

“We should get married.”

“What?” Shiro exclaims. It’s a miracle he’s able to actually say a word, because he can’t believe it.

“Yeah, I mean… I know it’s suddenly, but…” Keith is embarrassed, a slight tone of pink on his cheek as he tries to be very focused on his grilled fish. “We’re together for a while now and I think it can be the right moment… maybe…”

“Why now?” And Shiro forces himself not to scream. “I mean, it’s very suddenly. Definitely very suddenly.”

“Well, last week I was at Zethrid and Ezor’s wedding,” Keith starts.

“Yes, I remember you told me about Galra’s traditions. And about the fact you had to fight Ezor for Zethrid of something like that.”

Keith laughs and nods. “Yeah, the groom and the bride choose a champion, and their betrothed has to defeat him or her to prove the love is real and powerful,” he explains. “Ezor was very pissed about me. She complained Zethrid didn’t want to marry her for real since she chose a _fucking Voltron Paladin_. Her words.”

“And it was true?”

“Nah, Zethrid just wanted to screw with me and see her girlfriend kicking my ass. I mean, it’s not like I can defeat her for real and ruin the entire wedding.” Keith smiles at the memory: despite everything, he’s fond of his colleagues. “We are not going to do that at our wedding.”

“Oh, why not?” Shiro complains. “I was going to choose Lance as my champion.”

“That’s not funny,” Keith replies, with a laugh. “And be careful, because I could choose Allura. Or Pidge.”

Well, Shiro would have been screwed with both of them. Better not try too much his luck.

Keith eats the grilled fish in one bite. “Well, my mother was there too, and she said something along the fact she never got to marry my father and well, there were other problems back then, but I thought… about us…” he presses his lips together. “You don’t have to say yes. I’m fine the way we are.”

“What? No, no, of course I want to marry you.”

“Oh. Good.”

“Yes. Good. Good.”

The conversation stops.

Shiro registers absently-minded as the waiter takes his plate and brings another one, and eats the small amount of food without even thinking about it. He’s going to marry Keith. He’s happy about it. It doesn’t matter who asks first, right? And to be fair honest, the entire dinner sucks, so maybe it’s for the best if Keith never finds out his idea.

“We don’t really have to marry,” Keith says, at last, while he takes the last sip of the very expensive wine Shiro ordered.

“You said you want to.”

“Of course, but… You don’t like the idea much, so…”

“No, no. I like it! I like it very much! What makes you think I don’t?”

Keith gestures with his arms around, with a small frown on his face, a clear way to say “everything”.

“It’s not like that. For real. Just…”

He doesn’t get the chance to finish the sentence, because the waiter comes with the tray of dessert: two small cupcakes, one chocolate, one red velvet, shaped like a lion, with a sentence written with chocolate in between: will you marry me? He places the tray on the table between the two of them, the written turned on Keith, and he leaves after reserving them a smart smile. Shiro prays that something, anything just happens so he can escape the second-hand embarrassment he’s feeling.

“That was your plan for the dinner?” Keith asks. He doesn’t take his eyes off the dessert tray.

“Yes.”

“Shiro. Shiro. I’m so sorry. So so sorry.” Keith places both hands to hide his face. “I can’t believe I just beat you on this…”

At first, Shiro images the small flinches of Keith’s shoulder to be caused by tears. And he’s moved too, and he’s about to reassure him, that everything is fine and he isn’t offended by it, it was an accident and Keith can’t guess it, because it’s supposed to be a surprise… But no. Keith’s movements are because he’s trying – and failing – not to laugh.

Well, now Shiro _is_ offended.

“You’re laughing. I can’t believe you’re laughing.”

“Sorry. Sorry.” Keith doesn’t look sorry at all. He stands up, takes the red velvet cupcake and stuffs it in his mouth. Not a simple task, considering he's still trying not to laugh. He turns around and leaves the restaurant with steady steps.

Shiro blinks. He grabs his own cupcake and follows him: Keith hasn’t gotten too far, he’s in the porch in front of the restaurant, this time laughing full force. Shiro imagined tears in Keith’s eyes after his proposal, just not like that.

He crosses his arms. “Are you done?”

Keith takes a long, deep breath. “Maybe?” He looks at the front door of the restaurant. “Please tell me you paid already and we haven’t just given the impression to leave without paying.”

“Don’t worry, I had. I had planned everything but you ruining my dinner.” He shots a not amused look at Keith, who is about to laugh again, and eats his cupcake. “But we probably give the impression you rejected my proposal.”

“Ops,” Keith muses. “Should I return inside and announce to everyone I accept?”

“Do you?”

Keith tilts his head. He moves near him. “Of course I do,” he says, and he gets up on his toes to kiss him and lick from his lips the crumbs of the chocolate cupcake.

“That’s reassuring.”

“We still not having any Galra tradition at our wedding.”

“Deal if we ask everyone else but this restaurant for the catering.”

Keith laughs. “I’m still hungry.”

“Same. Mc’s?”

“Mc’s.”

And that’s it.

Shiro can’t say it’s the best proposal in the world but it works in the end. They make everything work in the end.

 


	3. Animal!AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear I wrote this story a week before Kitbull came off XD

They pull behind the leash. Taken by surprise, Shiro drops the grip he has on the other’s dog neck. He barely registers the other dog’s fall, as he keeps growling, his fangs bare. They drag him out of the fence.

“I can’t believe the cripple won!”

“Pay up!”

“You’re new here, right? That’s the champion.”

“Damn, that dog’s luck is gonna end sooner or later.”

“Thinking someone wanted to put it down after it lost its leg…”

Their voices and their yells resound in Shiro’s ears until the syringe presses in the back of his neck. Shiro’s muscles relax as the adrenaline of the battle wears down. As usual, what it remains isn’t the anger, the fear, but the disgust and the horror.

They take off his prosthetic leg, treat his wounds with not much care, then shove him in the cage. Shiro curls on himself; it isn’t much of a choice, since the cage isn’t big enough for him to stand, let aside move around. The only thing he can drink is the blood that covers his fangs. He places his head on his only foreleg and closes his eyes.

The room around is quiet, save for some low whine from the wounded dogs in the cages around. Some of them won’t survive until tomorrow. Shiro might: he has won until now, and he hasn’t let the wounds take him down either.

Like every night, he tries to sleep thinking about positive things.

He thinks of Allura, her gentles hands as she rubs his belly. Of Coran, the way he says “good boy” every time Shiro brings back the ball. Of Allura’s favorite, Lance, as the ferret curls around her neck in her sleep and the way he concedes Shiro to share the bed “because it’s you”. Of Pidge’s lair, where she tries to hide during the turtle’s hibernation period, only to be disturbed every time by Hunk. The cavy gets annoyed without his favorite partner for play.

And he thinks of Keith. The skinny black cat Shiro himself saved from the road and brought back to Allura’s house until she agreed to keep him too. Shiro wouldn’t let Keith returning to be a tramp and he was sure Keith doesn’t mind having a house.

Shiro remembers the way he keeps sleeping at the corner of Allura’s bed, much to Lance’s annoyance. The way he attacks Shiro’s tail, the way he enjoys playing hide and seek with Hunk, the way he helps Pidge moving around.

The way Keith mews Shiro’s name…

Shiro jerks back from his sleepy state as he hears screams outside. The dogs around him barks and the room, a second ago silent, echoes the confusion. Shiro is still calm. Until that moment, the matches have been only once a week, and only one for each dog. It’s a strange change of the human’s habit he’s worry about.

The light turns on. The men entering the room aren’t the usual. Not the ones that kidnapped Shiro, not the ones that take care of him during the matches. Understanding what they are saying is impossible because of the confusion around. Shiro follows them with his eyes, as they open the cages and bring out the dogs one after another. They restrain the dogs, but the way they move is careful, attentive. They check the dogs’ condition and pay attention to their wounds.

Still, Shiro finds himself drew back in the cage as one of the men approaches. It’s pointless, because the cage isn’t so big to let him distance enough to put him in a safe place.

“Easy, easy, boy,” the man whispers. He opens the cage, but he doesn’t stretch his arms to reach Shiro. Instead, he invites Shiro. “Come. Come.”

Shiro looks around, unsure. But the cage’s door is open and it’s too inviting for Shiro to refuse. He craws and the man moves to let him outside.

“Hey, Ulas. Be careful,” the other man says.

“Don’t worry, Thace. He’s a good boy.” Ulas kneels at Shiro’s height and rubs his back. Shiro flinches and releases a low growl. Ulas retreats the hand and still looks at Shiro with soft eyes.

“God. Look at those wounds,” Thace comments. “And he misses a leg too.”

“The collar is too tight, I can see from here. Help me out.”

Shiro panics as Thace grabs his body and pulls him down. He growls and struggles but Ulas still manages to inject him with something that relaxes him. Shiro yelps as they transport him outside and places him on a blanket inside a trunk. Ulas takes off the collar and keeps whispering sweet words at Shiro, a hand rubs his head.

Shiro isn’t sure if he can trust them yet. For now, they treat him better that the other men, but he still hates being unable to be free at least with his body. Once the trunk reaches his destination and Shiro is moved in a room that looks like a veterinarian’s place – Shiro’s memories of his visits with Allura are now better that what actually were back then – Shiro relaxes.

Maybe he’s saved.

Ulas and Thace treat him. They bandage carefully his wound, give him medicines and overall do a complete checkup. Shiro let them.

“The leg was amputated with accuracy. I guess a veterinarian did it. And they removed his chips too.”

Thace snorts. “Veterinarians who agree to work from the illegal dogs’ fight are the worst. I hope the police had got them all.”

“Look at this wounds.” Ulas clean a cut on Shiro’s foreleg. “Don’t worry, big boy, you’ll be fine. And the fur will grow up again.” His voice softens. “I’m pretty sure you are a gorgeous dog.”

“It’s hard to say with all those wounds, but I guess he can be a Golden Retriever?” Thace hums.

“Yeah. Usually, for dogs’ fight, they look out for wandered dogs or for ferocious breeds. This boy is neither.”

“I’ll put his information on our website, let’s see if we can find his owner.”

As he leaves, Ulas rubs Shiro’s head. Shiro turns to lick his hand and Ulas smiles. “Good boy. I’ll take care of you until your owner returns. I’m pretty sure they miss you.”

Ulas maintains his promise. They give Shiro good food and water, a big cage outside where Shiro can stretch his muscles and a lot of treatment. They also bath him. His fur returns golden as it’s supposed to be, covering his wounds. The scar on his nose and the missing legs remain the only proof of his bad adventure.

Allura doesn’t come.

Shiro doesn’t believe she forgets about him, but time has passed for sure. And Shiro can’t even tell where they are. She probably doesn’t know about his whereabouts. It’s even worse, as Shiro imagines Allura placing around the flyers with his photo and the word “missing” behind him.

He wants to leave. To wander around and search for her. He doesn’t want another owner, as Ulas suggests once. Better be a tramp looking for his owner that stay there forever.

“I’m not sure Iverson will accept,” Thace comments. “As sad as it is, dogs rescued from fights are seeing as dangerous for new owners.”

“Oh, come on, look at him. He’s a good boy.” Ulas rubs Shiro’s face. “He won’t hurt a fly.”

Until he does.

To Shiro’s excuse, he reacts because he feels threatened. The man called Iverson doesn’t have ill intentions, but the way he speaks is somewhat similar to the men that kidnapped him. Iverson’s voice is demanding, he commands Shiro. And when he pulls the leash a little too strong, Shiro remembers the fence. His vision blurs for a second and he attacks, bare fangs as he bites Iverson’s leg.

It takes both Ulas and Thace to drag him back and calm him. Shiro stops earing their voices, and he yelp, an apology for them and for the man who’s still crying in pain.

But even if Shiro calms himself in a second, the damage is done.

“I absolutely won’t let this dog being adopted!”

“He’s good,” Ulas pleas. “He has trauma, but we can work on it…”

“The answer is no,” Iverson replies. “If we endanger someone because we let a dangerous dog being adopted, we can be suited. The kennel can’t afford a cause or a refund.”

“He’s not dangerous…”

“If we can’t find his owner and we can’t let him being adopted, it means we have to put him down,” Thance intervenes. “He doesn’t deserve it.”

“I’m sorry.” Iverson sounds sincere, even if he’s condemning Shiro to death. “We still have some time for his owner to keep in touch. Otherwise…”

Shiro doesn’t wait to the end of the sentence. He doesn’t want to die. He doesn’t survive so long in the fence only to be killed by the men that claim to save him.

The door is open.

Shiro lowers down, his belly places on the ground. As Ulas and Thace let their guard down, Shiro springs. Despite not having a prosthetic foreleg, he’s still fast enough. He runs outside the room, follows the hallway and reaches the courtyard outside. There are people here, coming for a look at the dogs. Which means the gate is open too.

Shiro keeps running, ignoring the scream behind him and the curious look of the humans around. He’s almost at the gate when Iverson manages to grab his leash and stops him. Shiro loses his breath, feeling the collar gripping his neck.

He yelps and turns, in time to see a shadow jumping on Iverson’s arm. The shadow reveals to be a black cat. It bites the hand that keeps Shiro’s leash, and it slips from Iverson’s grip. The cat lands with grace next to Shiro.

“Run.”

Shiro doesn’t think. He follows the cat outside the gate. They rush in the street, avoiding the humans in their path. They turn and turns at every corner until they reach a park. The cat enters goes hiding in the bushes. Only then, safe from the humans’ gazes, it stops.

“Shiro…”

So he is Keith. Shiro stares as he realizes Keith grows up. He isn’t the skinny small cat Shiro remembers. Even if his size is still smaller compared to a male adult cat, he isn’t a kitten anymore. His fur grows too, and his tail is now fluffy as Keith lifts it. His long vibrissa trembles, as he watches carefully at Shiro with his big blue eyes.

“Keith…” Shiro murmurs.

Keith gets near. He gives a small head butt at Shiro’s chest and then he rubs his entire body against Shiro’s flank. His tail is upright, the end curves a little. For a second, Keith purrs. It lasts a second, but he relaxes Shiro. After all, Keith isn’t a cat that purrs very often.

“Where have you been?” Keith asks. “What happen to you?”

“I wish I can tell.” After his rescue, the memories become more and more foggy, as Shiro tries to cancel all the pain. “I was kidnapped… Men enter into the yards when Allura wasn’t at home… They made me fight… Against other dogs…” He bares his fangs: how many of them have been kidnapped too, leaving a nice owner alone and worried about them? And Shiro was forced to kill them in order to survive.

Keith purrs again. “I know you didn’t leave us. We all know,” he adds. “We miss you.”

Shiro licks Keith’s head. “How do you find me?”

“Moving around.” Keith yawns. “I get far and far from home hoping to find some lead. I found out they brought new dogs at the kennel here recently and I came looking.”

“You left the house?” Shiro doesn’t want to sound annoyed, but he feels bad for Allura. Losing two animals at the same time…

“No… Not really. I do come back sometime.”

The answer seems made to relax Shiro. It doesn’t work. Keith was a stray cat when Shiro met him, and in some way he never got along with some rules of being a domestic animal. Without Shiro, it wouldn’t be far-fetched Keith returns at his old habit as a tramp.

Shiro looks around. He doesn’t recognize the park, as he didn’t recognize the streets they took before. They are probably very far from home. And Shiro has the feeling that they won’t wait for his owner anymore before put him down after his escape. Besides, Keith is in danger now, and he doesn’t have the chip or the collar: he refuses them. For other humans he is definitely a tramp.

“Let’s go home,” Keith says.

“You know the way?”

“Yes. I had to keep track every time I move, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to bring you back.”

“Let’s move, then.”

Shiro follows Keith blind. He has no idea where they are, but he trusts Keith enough to not doubt at all that he knows what he’s doing. Shiro wants to ask about the others, ask about Keith himself and how he dealt with Shiro’s disappearance, but he does not dare. He just follows his lead.

Sometimes, Keith stops to check if Shiro has some problem, or if he still can manage walking. They have a lot of streets ahead. Shiro doesn’t hide his fatigue: even if the cage at the kennel is bigger, it’s still a cage. He doesn’t have much time to exercise himself. And he misses a leg too, something Keith is trying not to look at. He fails most of the time, but Shiro doesn’t mind.

Keith won’t judge him for his weakness.

Once it becomes night, Keith still moves until they reach the bridge over a river. There is a small stone stair that brings under the bridge. The area smells bad and, from the garbage, it has been the shelter of clochards in the past. Keith nods at an old blanket.

“It’s not the best place, but it’s safe. I sleep here before.”

Keith’s expertises as a stray cat are showing. He doesn’t remember if he was abandoned by some owner that didn’t want the kitten of their female cat or if he lost himself from his mother, but surely he knows how to live in the open. It was one of the many things Shiro loves about him, and the one that convinced Shiro that Keith deserves someone to take care of him too.

Shiro sleeps badly. He doesn’t miss the fact that Keith doesn’t curl himself on the blanket, neither he stretches against Shiro’s belly. Instead, he remains near the stair. He’s watchful. It’s not good for a cat not to sleep.

Shiro stands up, takes him by the scruff of his neck and places him on the blankets. “Rest,” he says.

“I’m fine,” Keith protests, but in the end he crouches down. Shiro curls around him and licks his fur until Keith closes his eyes. They have enough hearing to get ready if someone approaches.

They move again at the first light in the morning. From the building around, Shiro understands they reach the suburbs of the city. Which city, he can’t say. He knows Allura attends college in the near big city, but she never brings Shiro with her.

At a corner, Keith stops and sits down. Shiro tilts his head, as a silent request.

“If we’re lucky, we can save some road,” Keith explains.

They wait for ten minutes, until a bus stops by. A man gets off. In a jump, Keith gets on. Shiro follows, unsure. Only three humans are on board, still Shiro doesn’t feel safe in such a small space. Keith takes place in one of the seats near the door.

“Don’t worry, they never pay attention to me. Too sleepy at this time.”

Shiro is grateful Keith understands his worries. He remains on the ground, next to his seat. The bus does five more stops, few humans come and go, until Keith decides it’s time to get off. The surrounding has changed again, but Shiro still doesn’t recognize the place.

“Are you hungry?” Keith asks.

“A little,” Shiro admits.

“Wait here.”

Shiro watches with a mixture of awe and worries as Keith enters in a butcher’s. He returns a couple of minutes later, with a small piece of meat in his mouth. He places it before Shiro.

“The butcher likes cats,” Keith explains.

“I see.” Shiro looks uncertain at the meat. It won’t be enough to stop his hunger, still his hesitation is about Keith.

“Don’t worry. I eat another piece inside the shop.”

It’s a lie, of course, Shiro understands that well.

But he accepts it and swallows the piece of meat in one bite, before they travel again. Shiro realizes they aren’t in the same city anymore. He wonders just how far Keith has been wandering around searching for him.

They reach the train station. Shiro took the train once, with Allura, so he recognizes it.

“In days of college, Allura takes the train from here,” Keith explains. “If we’re lucky, this is one of those days.”

Shiro’s tail wags. They are almost home. “Otherwise?” he still asks, because he knows recently things haven’t been great for him.

“We take the train to get to Allura’s town.”

They don’t enter the train station, they hide in the nearest flower bed, near enough to see all the humans that go inside but not being spotted by them. They are mostly young humans, Shiro notices. Hours pass. At certain hours, the train station is crowded with people Shiro finds difficult to follow all of them.

“It’s not Allura’s day,” Keith says at last.

It’s almost evening.

At the platform, only few humans remain. They shot a look at Keith and Shiro, but make no attempt to disturb them. Shiro understands they may appear as a tramp at their eyes. He hopes none of them call the kennel, or that they are distant enough to be safe from Iverson’s hunt. Keith can escape. Shiro can hold back the men to let him run. Even if the train station is a dangerous place to run in the first place.

The trains are loud and fast.

“Look, Ryan! It’s Keith! He comes back. And with a friend! A dog friend!”

Shiro jumps a little in the direction of the voice and sees two young humans walking in their direction. From their clothes and the giant bag hung on their shoulder, he guesses they are athletes, or so the humans call that kind of people, whoever it means.

If Keith takes the train often to go around searching for Shiro, it isn’t strange people start to recognize him. Maybe they aren’t dangerous, still Shiro places himself between them and Keith.

The two boys stop a few meters from them. Keith looks annoyed. Shiro glares.

“Careful, James. This dog doesn’t look friendly.”

James takes off a small sack from his pocket. Shiro recognizes the rumors of treats. Slowly, he bends over and walks slowly, his hand leans forward. “Here, kitty, kitty.”

Shiro barks before James can get too near. He stops.

“Told you.” Ryan chuckles. “Keith hires a dog as a bodyguard.”

James pouts. “I’m just being friendly.” He let the treats fall in the ground and walks back to the other human. They chat between themselves. From the words Shiro catches, they talk about him and his scar and his missing leg. It isn’t surprising.

His look is more focused on the treats. The boys look nice. Harmless. “Keith. Do you know them?”

“I saw them before. They like taking pictures of me.”

So they are good humans, the kind that likes animals, even stray ones. “Go eat. You haven’t for more than a day,” he adds, as Keith is about to refuse.

“Okay.” Keith reaches the treats and basically swallows them whole. From time to time, he keeps an eyes on the two boys, to be sure they don’t come near.

“See? My plan to win Keith over the food is working.”

Ryan rolls his eyes. “You don’t have something for the dog too?”

“No… wait, I have the remains of my sandwich.” Still keeping the bag on his shoulder, James rums inside until he takes off a small package. He opens it and throws the sandwich forward. Shiro barks again for the surprise, and Keith rushes at his side.

“You scare them,” Ryan complains.

Shiro and Keith look at each other, then at the sandwich on the ground. Keith moves faster, he grabs it with his mouth and brings back to Shiro. He glares at him, daring to refuse it. Keith got the treats, he’s fine. Shiro needs to eat more.

“Oww, how cute. I want to put it on Instagram.”

They ignore Ryan and James as they keep looking at them. Shiro sighs happily. “With it, I almost have an entire breakfast for today.”

“Once we reach Allura, she will feed you.”

Keith looks worried. He shouldn’t. He saves Shiro, he should be proud. Starving for a couple of days is still better than what Shiro went through.

“Thanks to you.” He places a paw on his back and licks his face. Keith isn’t reassured, but he replies getting near to Shiro and rubs against him.

The train arrives. James and Ryan are considerate enough to wait for Shiro and Keith get on before following. Like they did in the bus, Keith finds a spot near the door so they can escape easily, and takes a seat, while Shiro sits in the ground.

“You can come too,” Keith invites him.

“It’s too little for me to stay comfortable,” Shiro answers. It’s true, but it’s mostly an excuse. He doesn’t feel comfortable in the entire train.

There are few humans in the train car, and only James and Ryan are near enough to be heard. Still, the movements of the train make Shiro sleepy after the day of wander. He looks at Keith: he’s attentive as usual.

“I’m sorry,” Shiro murmurs.

“Don’t,” Keith replies.

“Thanks.”

Shiro lets himself relax. He notices the stops of the train, but he keeps his eyes closes. Once Keith jumps next to him to warn they reached their destination, he feels rested. Again, James and Ryan let them move first. Keith jumps off the train and stops, his eyes wide. Shiro almost stumbles into him.

“Shiro! Shiro!”

It’s Allura. She’s on the platform and she’s running towards them. Shiro remains still, unable to realize he’s back, and he’s safe now that his owner finds him. Allura throws herself at him, hugging him and sinking her head in his fur.

“It’s really you. You’re back.” Shiro licks her face, happy. Allura doesn’t cry, she just doesn’t, but she’s moved.

“My God. What’s happening… Well, now you’re back. You’re safe.” She turns her head a little. “Keith. You brought him back.” Keith walks forward to let her rub the back of his ears.

“Oh, hey, Allura. The dog’s yours too?”

She lifts her head. “Yes! He disappeared more than a year ago… I searched for him but in the end, I gave up… Keith didn’t. He never did.”

“You mean Keith takes the train searching for your dog?” James is impressed.

“And he found him.” Allura nods.

“This is so cute.” James kneels down and leans his hand. Keith ignores him.

“Don’t bother. Keith only loves Shiro.”

Allura gestures at Shiro, who isn’t sure it’s entirely true. He’s pretty sure Keith loves her too, and the other animals of her house. Still, Keith passes near James, he rubs his body against his leg – making James melts – before attaching himself to Shiro.

“How do you know they were here?” Ryan asks.

“Thanks to your Instagram. I saw your video.”

“Oh. I guess I should have called it ‘Keith and his dogfriend’ after all.”

Allura laughs. “Definitely.”

Much to Keith’s annoyance, she takes him in her arms. “Let’s go home.”

For the first time in a long time, Shiro takes the chance to not being watchful. Keith is still at his back, looking at him closely, and Shiro can feel his gaze on himself. It’s reassuring. Shiro wants to thank him properly once the situation is settled, but for now he dedicates his time to the others.

Coran is waiting for them at home, and he cries against his fur for five minutes straight. The others jump on him, and each one of them shows Shiro their affection in their own way. Lance offers his place on Allura’s bed, saying he will let for once the pillow next to Allura’s head free. Hunk lets Shiro eats his portion of the food. Pidge spends a whole amount of time explaining how cool Shiro is even with a missed leg.

Keith remains a little far. He watches Shiro enjoying his time with the others. When Allura goes to bed, they all follow. She places Pidge at one corner of the bed and she let Shiro jumps and lies next to her, while Lance and Hunk curled between the two of them. Keith sits down next to Pidge. Allura feels asleep with her arm places around Shiro’s body.

Shiro is happy. He’s back at his home, with the people he loves.

But he can’t sleep.

Here, with Allura breathing next to him, Hunk and Lance fighting each other in their sleep, and Pidge closed in her shell, the memories of his time in the fence come back in full force. The dogs he killed in order to survive… they didn’t deserve it. Shiro doesn’t deserve a happy life anymore. Maybe he should remain a tramp for now, as a punishment. He knows how to survive, Keith just showed him.

More than that, he’s scared of being dangerous for the people he loves. He already reacted back with Iverson. It can happen again.

Slowly, he leaves the bed, opens the door of Allura’s room and climbs downstairs. The main door is closed, of course. His bed is still in the living room and Shiro guesses it’s because of Keith. He can see the dark hairs spread on it. After all, even before Keith refused to sleep in his own personal basket. Shiro lies down, inhales Keith’s smell.

And just after that, Keith is at his side. His eyes glow in the dark. He doesn’t say anything.

“I’m dangerous,” Shiro admits. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

Without answering, Keith takes two step forwards. He curls himself against Shiro, in the place where it should be his right forearm. Keith curves his back, exposing his belly in a very vulnerable position.

And he purrs.

Loudly.

The sound and the vibration are like a lullaby for Shiro. But more of it, it’s Keith presence. The warm of the cat’s body against his own and the unbreakable faith that Keith will stay at his side, no matter what. They’re not tramps, they have a home. And they have each other.

“It’s good to have you back,” Keith meows.

His eyes are closed, completely safe and relaxed. Shiro curls more so he can protect him with his entire body.

“It’s good to be back.”


	4. Family

It had been years, but returning to his old orphanage wasn’t something Keith took lightly. It was still somewhat unsettling, even if it was for work. The other orphanage left him with a melancholy feeling, while his own… he wasn’t sure how to cope with it. He admitted he was tense.  
“Welcome, Mister Kogane,” the headmaster welcomed him. “It’s fine in this way? Or do you prefer being addressed in some other way? Like Black Paladin or-”  
“Keith is fine.” He shook her hand. “I’m happy Earth finally open up at our intergalactic adoption program.”  
“Wise choice I approve fully.” The headmaster lent him in her office. “After the war, we have a large number of orphans, as you surely image. We managed somehow, but now…”  
“How many children do you have?”  
“Right now, eighteen. Most of them are six years old and younger, which is good for adoption. Oh, well,” she added with a small smile. “I’m not sure if it works the same with aliens.”  
“Some populations have a bigger lifespan than earthlings,” he took off a folder from his bags and placed it on the desk. “But for others is shorter, so it’s actually easy to find a match for older kids.”  
“That’s good to know.” The headmaster took the folder and checked it. “Those are the families that want an earth child?”  
“They’re interested in adopting and they don’t mind a child who comes from a different planet,” Keith explained. “The Blade of Marmora has analysts who sort the requests based on compatibility between species. The families we chose for Earth had to breathe oxygen, or having a diet similar to ours.”  
“I see.” She bit his lips. “You included Galra too.”  
“I think I’m the proof that Galra and Earthling are very compatible.”  
“I apologize, I didn’t mean as an offense.” She sighed. “But here on Earth Galra are often depicted as the bad guy and I fear this might be a problem.”  
“I’m aware of the Voltron cartoon.” Keith snorted. “But mostly Galra these days are half-Galra and in general they don’t look at all as they’re depicted here.” He didn’t add the fact that unfortunately Galra were still seen as the bad guys in the entire universe and that probably Earth was one of the few planets that had it easy compared to others.  
“I trust your expertise on the subject.” She put down the folder and she opens the closed behind her. “Shall we start with the match, then?”  
She handed him the files with the children and they watched them together, as Keith suggested how to match them with the families.  
They were halfway through it when a knock at the door interrupted them. A nurse opened the door with a resigned expression on his face.  
“I’m sorry,” she said. “It’s about Sven,” she added, this time only to the headmaster, that released a long sigh.  
“I’ll be right back,” she assured Keith before leaving the room together with the nurse.  
The door was left half-open, so Keith stood up and moved in a position where he could see the hallway. The headmaster and the nurse were now speaking with a policeman. Between them, stood a slim kid with short dark blond hair and a broken lip. Keith couldn’t understand what they were saying except a few words, but he definitely recognized the defiant gaze on the kid’s face. He used to have it a lot in the past.  
He took a long breath.  
When the headmaster nodded at the policeman and the nurse took the kid’s hand, Keith sat down again and waited for the headmaster to return.  
“What was it?” he didn’t refrain himself to ask.  
“Sven,” she said with a sigh. She collected a folder and opened it in front of him. Keith took a look at the picture in the file: the kid looked much younger. There was another picture next to his, that showed a girl with short blond hair. He said nothing, waiting for the headmaster to explain better.  
“It’s a sad story. Well, most are,” she corrected himself. “Sven and his sister Siv are Norwegian, they lived in an isolated house near a small city. One day, their parents disappeared.”  
“Disappeared?”  
“They’re probably dead,” the headmaster specified. “There was a strong snowfall, they lived towards a fjord… It’s not the first case dead bodies were retrieved years later.”  
“That’s terrible.”  
She nodded. “Worse, they didn’t found out of the disappearing until a few days later, and it took time to retrieve the children because of the snowfall. Sven and Siv were blocked in their house alone for at least a week.”  
“How old were they back then?”  
“Sven was nine, Siv was five. He took great care of her and even now… he really feels responsible for her.” She said it with a soft voice. “And this is a problem. He grew up too fast and he doesn’t let us help them. We tried to find a family for them as soon as possible, because it’s harder to accommodate two children together but… it didn’t work. Now Sven is fourteen and it’s even harder to be adopted at his age. With Siv, is even worse because the only time we tried to let her be adopted alone, he broke in the house and took her away.”  
“Oh.” Keith admired him, in a strange way.  
“I hope we can find someone for them thanks to your help.” She smiled.  
So they returned back to their work, examined all the children and their history and deciding which ones could adapt to an extra-planetarian adoption. A psychologist would speak with the children about the possibilities and then Keith would organize a meeting with the soon-to-be parents. It was a long work and it was just the beginning, but having done it before, Keith was impatient to see the outcome.  
When he returned home, he found Shiro there in his home uniform, including the apron. He was setting the table and something was boiling under the stove.  
“You’re early,” Keith stated, a little surprised.  
“First flying test for the third-grade pilots today,” Shiro explained. “They did so well we gave everyone the free afternoon.”  
“Woah. Is my record in danger?”  
“You never made in the third grand, you got expelled before.”  
“That’s not nice.” Keith faked annoyance.  
Shiro chuckled. He bowed a little to kiss Keith on the cheek. “Go take some rest while I finish making dinner.”  
“Careful, admiral, or I might get used to it and suggest an early retirement,” he joked.  
He left the kitchen smoothly before Shiro could reply back. He took a fast shower and change back from his Marmora uniform to earthling clothes. Once he returned back in the kitchen, Shiro was served curry rice in the plates. The smell was good.  
“So, how did it go at the orphanage?” Shiro asked as they sat down.  
“Good, I guess. They have eighteen children, but two pairs of brothers, and we have twelve families. Hopefully, we can match all of them. I should message Axca later to ask her if we can find two more families…” He took a bit of the rice. “Oh, it’s really good.”  
“I don’t like the surprised tone,” Shiro pouted.  
“I wasn’t… I mean…” Keith smiled. “I miss your Japanese dishes, you know.”  
A slight blush appeared on Shiro’s cheeks, and Keith wondered how it was possible Shiro was so easy to fluster even after all those years. As Keith didn’t have any more reasons to fell in love with him a little more every day.  
“So…” Shiro coughed a little. “What are your next moves?”  
“I will prepare the families for the journey towards earth until the headmaster takes care of the meeting between children and psychologist. Then I’ll take care of the match between the children and the parents.”  
“It means you’ll stay a little more at home?”  
Keith nodded. “I still have to travel back to escort the families from their planet, but I will stay here with them for all the time necessary to settle down with the children.”  
“That’s good. No more commute for a while.”  
“Yeah, it is.”  
Shiro’s smile fell, and he frowned. “There is something wrong?”  
“No. No.” Keith didn’t want to give the impression he wasn’t happy to spend more time at home. He realized he was a little bit cold to Shiro, and he didn’t deserve it. “I met a kid today.”  
Shiro listened carefully the story about Sven and in the end he commented, “he remembers you your past.”  
“Not quite,” Keith answered. “I don’t have anyone and he has a sister to take care of… but yes, there is definitely something in which I feel we are alike.”  
“This is understandable. You hadn’t been adopted too.”  
“That too. Hopefully, I can change that for Sven.”  
“I’m sure you will.”  
Keith released a small smile. “I’m sorry. We got so few time together and I’m ruining the mood.”  
“Don’t be ridiculous.” Shiro stood up to kiss him on the forehead, and Keith rested more against him. “Plus, have you already forget you endure with me when they closed my favorite Mac and cheese restaurant?”  
Keith laughed. “And I never told you I was actually happy about it.”  
“Traitor.”  
As Shiro kissed him again, Keith thought how much lucky he was in his life, despite everything. He hoped Sven could say the same in a couple of years.

  
***

  
Shiro had planned everything for the evening. Well, he didn’t plan the stutter in seeing Keith with his suit and his hair branded, but it was just a minor inconvenience. Nothing would disturb his plan. Hopefully, not his tension.  
“We’re ready?” Keith asked, with a smile, as he took Shiro’s hand. “What do you have in mind?”  
“You’ll see.”  
They took Shiro’s car and headed to the main city. It was a Friday evening, so the traffic was intense, but the restaurant Shiro had reserved was the most renewed in the area, with private parking. Keith frowned a little as he recognized the restaurant, but he followed Shiro inside without a word.  
They were welcomed by the owner himself. “Thank you for finding me a table with so little advance,” Shiro said, as he shook the other’s hand.  
“It’s the least we can do for the Admiral of the Atlas,” the owner answered. “I placed you in a reserved table so you can have your privacy.”  
“I really appreciated it.”  
Keith kept quiet until they sat down at their table and a waiter brought them the menu. He placed it next to his plates, a hand on it.  
“May I suggest something to drink?” the waiter said.  
“Maybe later,” Keith stated, his eyes fixed on Shiro.  
As the waiter left, Shiro took his menu. “I know it’s bad to use my position in this way, but I wanted to do something nice since we hadn’t a free night for ourselves in a while.”  
Keith still didn’t take his menu. “Shiro,” he said slowly. “What’s going on?”  
“Nothing.” Shiro released a nervous laugh. “You had a stressful week and I’m trying to… relax you a bit?”  
“Shiro.” Keith released a small sigh. “The last time we came here – last and only time until now, it was the evening you proposed to me.”  
“You mean the night I tried to propose to you and you beat me in this,” Shiro replied. “You know, I still can’t believe after years that you couldn’t just wait until the end of the dinner and completely ruined my idea.”  
Keith couldn’t help but smile at the memory. And at Shiro’s annoyed face. “I’m still sorry about that. But back to my point, that’s the reason I know something is off about this dinner.”  
“You’re not sorry at all since you’re doing the same thing now,” Shiro protested. He shot a glare at Keith, already knowing he wouldn’t let it go. He placed down the menu. “Okay. Listen. You’re still a little down because you didn’t manage to find a family for Sven and his sister.”  
A shadow passed through Keith’s face and he closed his eyes for a second. “It can’t be helped. The psychologist doesn’t feel it was a good idea for them to leave the planet and none of the parents they met changed it.” He bit his bottom lips. “But Shiro – I don’t want my mood to ruin our free night. I’m sorry if I gave you the impression-”  
“No, no,” Shiro interrupted him. Damn. In his head the entire conversation went a lot smoother. In real life, he ended to sadden Keith more and that wasn’t the plan. “What I want to say is…” He placed his hand on Keith’s. “I spoke with the headmaster and the psychologist. To ask them if we can be a safe choice of parents for Sven and Siv.”  
“You mean, for adoption?” Keith blinked.  
“They proposed six months of fostering to begin with, since we aren’t in the adoption program yet, but we’re supposing to go there at the end.”  
Keith’s eyes widened. “You don’t have to do it…”  
“No. But I want to.” He smiled. “I already thought about the idea of having children with you. We never talk about it because our jobs taking most of our time, but… maybe now it’s the right time, you know?”  
For a long minute, Keith stayed silent. Shiro swallowed. More seconds passed and he started to feel he did a big mistake. Maybe Keith didn’t want children. Maybe he saw all the children he helped finding parents as enough for him. Oh, no, now Keith would feel obligated to accept it. Why Shiro hadn’t mentioned it before? Great. He just ruined their free night.  
Until Keith stood up, turned around the table, placed a hand on Shiro’s kneel and another on his cheek and kissed him. Shiro relaxed and leaned forwards, his two hands grasped Keith’s waist.  
Their faces were still near as Keith murmured, “I love you.”  
“Is that a yes?”  
Keith chuckled and nodded. “Now that you confess, can we go to a place where we can actually eat something?”  
“With pleasure.”

  
***

  
Sven should be honored, or so they said. Sven didn’t feel honored. He didn’t need some saviors or hero to come and rescue him. He could do just fine by himself. He could take care of Siv by himself.  
He didn’t need adults.  
Of course, the headmaster’s word had a major impact on Siv: she sat there on the edge of the bed, with her cute floral dress, and her big blue eyes were searching for him. He moved next to her and took her hand.  
“Don’t worry,” he said. “Just act as usual and everything will be okay. They may be some VIPs out there, but they won’t be much different from everyone else.”  
She nodded and tightened her grip on his hand. He didn’t let her go not even when the psychologist came from them and lent them in the room for the parents meeting. Their supposed new parents were already there. Sven had heard about them, of course, but he never cared enough to actually recognized them.  
He took a small glare at them and decided to surname them One-armed and Scarred-face. It was easy to de-humanize them that way. It wasn’t like he was going to have a relationship with them and they wouldn’t know about him calling them with surname either.  
“Sven, Siv.” One-armed smiled. “Nice to meet you. I’m Shiro, and this is my husband Keith.”  
He leaned forwards his prosthetic floating arm. Neither Sven nor Siv moved to take it. Ten embarrassed seconds passed, before One-armed realized he was useless and he dropped his arm. His eyes turned a little to Scarred-face, that slightly nodded and put his hand on the other’s back.  
They sat down at the table, with the psychologist between the two couples.  
“They’re shy,” she murmured, with an apologetic smile.  
Sven refrained himself from snorting. It was almost cute the attempt to make them better at the eyes of the future parents. But they’re not shy, they just didn’t give a fuck. They had to endure the meeting until it last: Sven was sure that, like many before them, even One-armed and Scarred-face would grow annoyed at two children that didn’t talk.  
“So,” One-armed coughed a little, embarrassed. “I’m pretty sure the headmaster told you a little about us, but if you have some questions feel free to do so. We’ll be happier to satisfied every curiosity.”  
Silence. Sven was pretty sure One-armed was used to people asking questions and he had no idea how to act without any input. His eyes shifted to Scarred-face, who still had his hand on the back.  
At least, he talked. “I was an orphan too. I lived here, in this same orphanage. I wasn’t very good to… connecting with people.”  
Oh, great. The card ‘we’re similar’. First time Sven saw one of them using it. It wasn’t going to work, of course, but at least he appreciated the originality. He went on talking about his father, and the about his alien mother and how he’d met One-Armed. Then One-armed told about his childhood and his desire to become a pilot.  
Sometimes, Siv made a surprise face, or an interesting one. Sven grasped her hand to remember her to not let be fooled by some nice stories or a sympathetic look. Do not show weakness. It was painfully clear when One-armed took off a super technology alien floating cube. Siv’s eyes widened and her mouth opened, ready to ask what was it and what it could do.  
But then her eyes moved on Sven, and she remained silent.  
“There’s something you would like to see, dear?” the psychologist tried again. Siv shook her head. “Okay. I think it can be enough for today.”  
The psychologist stood up and shook her hand with the other two. “I’ll schedule next meeting for next week, if it’s okay for you two.”  
“It’s fine,” One-armed nodded.  
“If you can wait a second, I escort back Sven and Siv to the dormitory and then we can talk?”  
“Yes, please.”  
Sven snorted. He hoped to avoid another meeting, but they looked convinced to continue. Too bad. He smiled at Siv, to reassured her, ignoring the increasing tension in his heart. No one would foster children that didn’t talk, no one wanted a problem in their own house, not even the mighty heroes of Earth.  
For fostering, they asked for at least three meeting – Sven was sure they wouldn’t go past the second.  
That was how everyone acted.

  
***

  
Saying that Shiro was tensed was an understatement. It was tensed from the very moment he decided to go for the fostering program. Lucky for him, he had Keith at his side. He was agitated too, Shiro could see it very well, but he put on a brave face and try to comfort him.  
Man, it was easier fighting Zarkon. For both of them.  
Especially because Sven and Siv hadn’t said a word in the three meetings and, well, it was even more worrisome.  
They’d talked about it. Shiro is convinced Siv was a little more open to strangers, maybe because of her young age, but the presence of his brother stopped her every time. She should be easier speaking with her, involving her. Keith agreed, but at the same time he feared focusing on Siv could make the relationship with Sven worse. If he felt they’re taking his sister from him, he could react even worse.  
It was a mess.  
But even if Shiro’s heart was beating fast and there was a strange knot in his throat, he smiled widely as the headmaster lent at the orphanage’s gate Sven and Siv. They had only two backpacks and a small trolley. Shiro exchanged a brief look with Keith: they had already decided to go shopping the next day.  
The first part of the travel from the orphanage was a very long monologue from Shiro. A very embarrassed one, but he needed it to calm himself down, especially because Sven and Siv kept their mouth shut. He stopped only when Keith placed gently a hand on his leg. The rest of the journey was made in silence.  
“Welcome to our house,” Shiro said once they arrived. “I hope you like it.” This time, he didn’t even expect a reaction from the children.  
Keith took the luggage, while Shiro opened the door and showed the rooms around. They climbed the stairs: they converted old Keith’s office to a bedroom, even if for now there were only two mattresses and a settle. “We thought it would be nice if you choose how to furnish the room by yourself,” Shiro explained. “Tomorrow is Saturday, we might go to IKEA and buy everything there.”  
A glint of interest sparked from Siv’s eyes, but then she took her backpack and placed it on the mattress as Shiro hadn’t spoken.  
“We’ll go to IKEA tomorrow,” Keith said, with more decision. “There is still a little bit of time before dinner… the area around the house is safe, if you want to go and explore the surroundings. I also have a dog, it’s outside.”  
Again, Siv seemed interested in the word “dog”, but as soon as her brother placed a hand on her back, her expression faded.  
“We’ll be downstairs if you need something,” Keith added, and both him and Shiro left the room.  
Shiro breathed hard to calm himself. “We can do this, can’t we?”  
“Of course.”  
Keith made a small smile, and Shiro realized he felt a little guilty because they’d chose Sven and Siv because of him. Since Shiro knew words wouldn’t get through him, he hugged him from behind and kissed his head.  
“We can do it,” he repeated, with more confidence. “Let’s call Hunk.”  
“Wait. Why Hunk?”  
Shiro released him from the hug and took the datapad. “I asked him about some Norwegian recipes for Sven and Siv, to make them feel like home, you know? And Hunk offered to help us directly.”  
“That’s nice.”  
But there was a small frown on Keith’s face. “Don’t worry, he promised to not make fun of us. At least, not too much,” Shiro smiled.  
Hunk’s face compared to the screen of the datapad. “Hi, Hunk!” Keith greeted him. “Thanks for your help. We know you’re very busy.”  
“No problem. Ah, man, I’m so happy for you two, I really am. I was sure the second of us to have children after Lance and Allura would be me, but you beat me big time.”  
“Aha ah, sorry,” Shiro laughed.  
“No problem. I liked being an uncle for the time being. I can’t wait to meet them.”  
Keith exchange a look with Shiro. “Let’s them get used to us before introducing them to our space life and friends.”  
“Yeah, well, I agree. Even if you managed to adopt two Norwegian children from an orphanage in Arizona which is pretty strange to begin with. How did this happen?”  
“The orphanage here had free places and for the psychologist the snow was a trigger for Siv, so they suggested to move them in a country with no snow at all,” Keith explained. “Can we start? It’s almost evening and I don’t want to serve a late dinner for Sven and Siv first night here.”  
“Oooh, that’s the team leader I remember,” Hunk jokes.  
Shiro kissed Keith on the cheek and smiled at his pouty expression. So he wasn’t as quiet as he tried to be. They’re both pretty agitated about having two children in their care.  
Cooking calmed Shiro down, and he hoped he did the same for Keith. They weren’t good as Hunk (well, nobody was) but with his advice they prepared a pretty good dinner.  
“Let me know how it goes,” Hunk said before interrupting the videocall.  
“Sven, Siv, dinner’s ready,” Keith called from the bottom of the stairs, as Shiro started to serve the first dish. “Wash your hands before coming.”  
For five minutes, they waited, both looking at each other and both fearing the children wouldn’t come, but with a relieved sigh Keith saw them climbed down the stairs, hand in hand. They sat down at the table. There was a hint of surprise in both of their face when they recognized the dishes, but as usual they didn’t make comments.  
“I know they probably aren’t like the original,” Shiro said, “but I hope you still like them.”  
They ate in silence. From time to time Shiro and Keith exchanged words about the food, but Sven and Siv didn’t intervene. At least, they didn’t refuse the food. On the contrary, they ate everything Shiro put in front of them, in a mechanic way. Siv licked her lips with satisfaction after the dessert, and she did the same with the spoon, and that was all.  
“Wash your teeth before going to bed.” Keith sounded tired.  
Sven and Siv left the table immediately and disappeared upstairs. Keith helped Shiro rearranging the kitchen.  
“Please, at least talk with me,” Shiro said at last, deadpanned.  
“Sorry.” Keith leaned to him, placing his head to his shoulder. “I… I’m just a little bit scared to screw up.”  
“I am too.” Shiro nodded. “But you know, I’m pretty sure we can be a lot stubborn than they are. I became a pilot out of spite of my disease, and you defeated dead. They have a long way to go before they can reach our level.”  
Keith laughed. There was still some tension, some worries, and the first day didn’t go as smooth as they would have preferred, but they could do it. Together.

  
***

  
The plan hadn’t go how Sven’d predicted. Apparently, One-armed and Scarred were stubborn, or probably just more convinced of their means. The so-called heroes.  
It didn’t matter. Sven could adapt at any situation and he was going to use them for his personal plan. It wasn’t a petty revenge, not entirely at least.  
He expected them to live in the center of the city, maybe at the last floor of a skyscraper, or in a big villa in the suburbs, not in the middle of a desert in a small cottage. Still, not a problem: One-armed’s car had the gps, which was enough. Sven couldn’t find the cash. He supposed they had a safe somewhere, but he didn’t have enough time to search for it. Lucky for him, at the orphanage they had never noticed his hidden cash, which he’d managed to collect from pickpocketing around.  
It was ready. And with no intention of staying in that house for too much time. They were buying Siv, and he didn’t like it. He should protect her from adults.  
Once One-armed and Scarred were asleep, he woke up Siv. She blinked, confused, but he gestured at her to dress up and remain silent. Siv didn’t ask but did as she was told. Sven stuffed mostly of their belongings in one of the two backpacks, so it would be easy to transport. They went downstairs: the house was dark and silent.  
Sven opened a window and helped Siv to pass over. In the garage, there were One-armed’s car and a hoverbike. Sven’d stolen the keys of the car, but he needed to be sure they wouldn’t be able to follow them, so he opened the motor of the hoverbike and cut off some cables.  
The car was huge, but in some way Sven managed to take the controls. Siv curled in the passenger seat. He selected the destination to the navigator and started moved.  
“Where are we going?” Siv asked.  
“In a better place.”  
Siv looked at the window. “It looks nice here.”  
He sighed. “Everyone is nice at first. They aren’t different.” He looked at her. “You don’t trust me?”  
“Sure I do.”  
The rest of the travel was silent, even Sven moved from time to time to assure Siv wouldn’t fall asleep. He parked the car on the empty street, without care. He didn’t mind if they found it or not; once they did, they would be very far. The bus station was near, so they reached it by walk. Sven knew all the destinations and the timetable. He studied them.  
He’d decided the place to go, where he could hope to find a job even if he was a minor. A place where he could take care of Siv and where nobody would give a shit about him. He’d planned to escape from the orphanage once he became sixteen; things forced his hand, but he could pull it off. After all, both him and Siv looked older. Especially Siv.  
He stood before the ticket office, where an annoyed man was smoking. He reserved them a bored look.  
“Four tickets from bus D13,” Sven said. He wasn’t going to take that bus, but another one. At this late hours, driver didn’t check carefully the ticked. It was a decoy if they would come to search for them.  
“Are you all alone, kids?”  
“Duh. Of course not. Our parents stop at the market to buy some food. Four tickets, remember?”  
The man blinked. Twice. He tilted his head and looked far. He placed the cigarette down. “It’s 240,00 bucks.”  
Sven threw him the cash and took the tickets. They’re almost there. Now he just had to take bus D11. He turned to search for it… and froze. One-armed and Scarred were there, standing between them and the bus. How the hell did they find them and how the hell did they reach the place so fast? It took two hours for Sven from the house!  
They looked smug. Bastards.  
Sven tightened the grip on Siv’s hand. In a second, they were running on the opposite side of the bus station. He made less than a hundred meters before feeling something grabbing the collar of his jacket and lifting him. He lost the grip on Siv’s hand, who covered her mouth in surprise.  
It was the prosthetic hand. That damn floating hand could get very far from his owner, and an incredible speed. It was also very strong, because he brought back Sven still keeping him lifted. Siv walked next to him. The hand placed him on the ground once he was back in front of them.  
Sven refused to look at them, but he didn’t protest when One-armed grabbed both his and Siv’s hand.  
“Let’s go back.” It was an order.  
Sven and Siv followed quiet as they returned to the car. Sven was angry, and he also lost a lot of money for tickets he couldn’t use, but he understood when a battle was lost. As bad as it was, he underestimated them.  
Scarred drove, Sven sat next to him. He didn’t protest when One-armed sat on the backwards seat with Siv, but during all the journey he didn’t take his eyes off the two of them. There was a sweet smile on One-armed’s face as Siv felt asleep with her head against him. Sven snorted. Scarred’s face was unreadable.  
He talked once he parked the car in the garage. “Bring Siv to bed. I need to speak with Sven first.”  
Scarred’s hand were still on the wheel, and he didn’t turn his head. One-armed waited a second, before nodding. “Okay.” Siv was still sleeping and he lifted her gently in his arms.  
No, no, no, no. Sven wouldn’t have let Siv alone. He opened the car door and was about to get out when Scarred grabbed his arm. His grip was strong, hard as iron.  
“Let me go!”  
“Oh, so you can talk.”  
Sven gritted his teeth. He kicked and struggled, but he didn’t manage to break free. Scarred left him only when he was sure One-armed was far enough, but that didn’t stop Sven to run to reach them. He made two steps outside the garage before Scarred tripped him and he fell in the desert dust.  
It was almost dawn.  
Scarred stood now before him and the house, arm crossed. “If you really want to protect your sister, you need to reflex first to the consequences,” he said. “Do you realize how foolish and dangerous was your stunt tonight?”  
“I can protect my sister just fine, I don’t need your advices. Or you!”  
“What if you meet a bad person that want to hurt Siv? It’s pretty likely in the night, with two children all alone. You won’t able to save her. You can’t even surpass me.”  
Sven yelled. He was so angry. So angry. At that man and at himself. He rushed forwards and threw himself at Scarred. He clung on him. He knew he couldn’t beat him in a normal fight, but he’d noticed the knife Scarred kept at his belt. Sven took it.  
A second later, Scarred grabbed his wrist and turned him. The knife turned into a full blade pointed at Sven’s neck. Sven swallowed and let the grip on the handle.  
“If I was a bad person, you would be dead and Siv would be all alone, with me.” Scarred left his grasp and took the blade from the ground. It returned a knife as he put it back in its place. “I understand the desire to protect the person you care about. I did it all my life. But I also learned you had to be strong to do that. And you don’t have to do it alone.”  
He turned: One-armed was standing in front of the house, a worried look on his face.  
“Go to bed,” Scarred ordered.  
Sven didn’t reply. He tried not to admit it, but he was scared. Things looked dark. Really dark and dangerous. He walked with his head low, he surpassed One-armed, climbed the stairs and reached his new bedroom.  
Siv was there, and she hadn’t put her pajamas on. She was still asleep, a small smile on her lips.

  
***

  
Shiro and Keith let the kids sleep more in the morning giving the night adventures. They didn’t change their plan to go to IKEA, so they made a brief brunch and then left for the nearest store. Sven and Siv still refuse to talk, but at least they obeyed without complain either.  
Keith noticed how Sven casted look at him from time to time and felt a little bad. Shiro placed a hand on his shoulder to relax him. They’d talked about it and Shiro’s agreed it was a necessary lesson.  
They both were not angry but worried about Sven’s escape, because he could have put himself and Siv in danger and they could only thanks Pidge’s surveillance system and Kosmo’s intelligence and transportation power that they reached them in time.  
Still, Keith wasn’t satisfied with his behavior. He’d been patient with Sven. He’d been understanding. For once, he thought to be a little bit harsh and now he regretted it.  
The tour at IKEA calmed him down. Sven let Shiro took Siv’s hand without any fuss. He still kept a close look, but didn’t complain. And Siv was happy to look at the furniture, even if she tried to hide it. At the end, they chose the one she looked happier about, even if she didn’t say anything. They loaded the car and moved in the nearest shopping mall.  
There, Sven talked for the first time. “We don’t need new clothes.”  
Shiro smiled gently. “It’s okay. New life, new clothes. See them as present from us.”  
“We don’t want your presents. We don’t want your money.”  
“You still need new clothes,” Keith intervened. “Yours came from the orphanage and they’re too old. So choose something you like to replace them.”  
Shiro’d meant well into offering a present, but it was clear that Sven didn’t appreciate kindness, or saw it in a bad light. So, for the important things, they would order him around. And apparently it worked, or the small fight they had had in the morning did make some changes, because Sven obeyed. He grabbed a couple of shirts and pants for him and Siv.  
“Do you think I was too much harsh?” Keith whispered at Shiro as he paid for the clothes.  
“Maybe,” Shiro admitted. “But it worked, and right now we don’t know the best way to deal with them. But I might have an idea.”  
Keith expected an explanation, but Shiro reserved a smirk to him, so Keith waited until they returned home to find out Shiro’s plan. Shiro let Keith bringing the furniture in the bedroom all alone as he placed himself at the kitchen’s table. Keith reached him later, alongside with Sven and Siv.  
“What are you planning?” Keith asked, eyebrow raised.  
“Since Sven here wants to be independent, I think it’s just fair if he pays for his and her sister’s expenses,” Shiro said.  
He leaned forward a paper. After a second of hesitation, Sven grabbed him. And paled. Keith looked at the paper: Shiro’d written a list of the purchases and it was a consistent amount of money for a kid with no incomes. It also wrote down the expense for the gas they used to bring them back from the bus station.  
“I left off the expense for meal and bills because that would be refunded by the orphanage.”  
It was a lie, but Sven didn’t catch it. He placed the paper down on the table. “Fine. I’ll refund you.”  
“And how do you plan to do it?” Shiro asked gently.  
Sven looked annoyed. “In some way.”  
Shiro took off another paper. “You can start from it.”  
Keith was pretty curious, but he waited for Sven to take the paper before looking at it. It was another list, of things Sven could do, from taking good grades to help with the chores. Next to each thing, there was the money he could gain. For example, an A is worth 15,00, a B is worth 10,00, and so on.  
Sven grasped the paper until it crumbled in his hand. He didn’t look at Shiro and Keith was sure Shiro was holding his breath. “Fine,” Sven said at least.  
Shiro visibly relaxed. He exchanged a look with Keith, who smiled. It was actually a good idea. He wasn’t surprised it came from Shiro.  
“We can start now,” Keith said. “It’s time to wash my dog and I can use some extra hands.”  
“Can I help too?” Siv said it not looking at his brother, but with a small smile. Keith suspected she liked dogs.  
“Two people, twice the earnings.”  
“Yeah, sure,” Sven agreed. Keith guessed he preferred having Siv with him.  
“It’s decided, then.” Shiro hung both papers at the fridge.  
Keith moved outside the house. “Kosmo!” he called.  
The wolf popped in front of them and both Sven and Siv gasped. Siv was the first one to recover and made another excited yelp. “Can I touch it?”  
“Of course you can,” Keith said gently. She didn’t wait for his brother’s approval and moved near to Kosmo, who lowered his head and let her scratching it.  
“This is not a dog,” Sven protested. “And he can teleporter too?”  
“Well, it is my dog,” Keith answered with a smile. “But it’s a cosmic wolf.”  
“That’s how you caught up so fast yesterday, you cheater.” Sven looked at Kosmo as he let Siv riding him. “It’s even possible to wash it?”  
“That’s why I need extra hands,” Keith said.  
“And that’s why I put a high price for this chore,” Shiro adds. “Since you’re fine, I’ll take care of the bedroom.”  
“Do you think you can assemble it by yourself?”  
Shiro looked offended. “I know how to repair an airship, I’ll be fine with an IKEA’s bed.”  
It turns out that assembling a IKEA’s bed was harder than repaired a pod. When Keith went to check for Shiro after they managed to wash Kosmo, he found him surrounded by furniture’s pieces, completely lost.  
“I fear we should call the engineers,” he commented.  
“So they can mock us to no end?”  
“Let me know if you had a better idea.”  
Keith hadn’t, so he took his datapad, resigned. Pidge and Matt arrived in few minutes, as they hadn’t something better to do on Saturday than waiting for a help call from them. Siv was happy enough to play with Kosmo that forgot she wasn’t supposed to talk with adults and she greeted the two genius brothers with a smile. Sven offered his help to assemble the furniture so he could gain more money.  
It turns out that not even the engineers could help. Much with Pidge and Matt’s annoyance, because they were forced to take back all the mocking, Shiro called the operators from IKEA and paid them to fix the bedroom. While the operators worked, Pidge ordered pizza and they ate all together on the porch, sitting down on the ground, especially because Siv and Sven are still covered in mud after their adventures with Kosmo’s bath. They didn’t talk during the entire dinner, but Keith had the impression they listened to their conversation as if they’re somewhat more interested than usual.  
Pidge and Matt left ten minutes after the operators. While Shiro helped Siv and Sven to arrange their belongings in their new bedroom, Keith took a brief shower – he had some mud on himself too. He heard his datapad ringing, so he went downstairs with only his bathrobe and a towel that rubbed in his hair.  
It was Lance.  
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about the adoption,” he greeted Keith.  
“How… how do you find out?”  
“I was in a videocall with Pidge when you called her today.”  
Keith rolled his eyes: both him and Shiro’d told their friend to avoid speaking with Lance about it for now (Allura knew though), but of course it was something so huge it could slip at any time.  
“I can’t believe it,” Lance repeated. “I’m a father too, I can help.”  
At that was exactly the reason Keith and Shiro wanted to wait before informing him about the situation. “Sorry, Lance, but my kids are a little bit older for me to need advices about diapers and pacifiers.”  
“Aww, and you’re already call them your kids. Aaaand now you’re embarrassed. Way to go, team leader.”  
Keith was about to answer he had intention to use his authority to stop the call, but he was interrupted from a scream coming from upstairs. Without warning Lance, Keith rushed following the rumors.  
He found the other three in the bathroom: Shiro was trying to stop a very angry Sven that was kicking and punching him. Siv, naked, stood in a corner, worried. Keith reacted without thinking: he grabbed Sven by the collar and pushed him in the ground.  
“Please don’t hurt my brother!” Siv looked terrified, almost in tears.  
“Of course not,” Keith murmured, as he released Sven.  
In a second, he stood up and placed himself between them and Siv, covering her completely. Shiro moved next to Keith and spoke, “you both need a shower. Let the dirty clothes in a corner, we’ll wash them later.”  
Without a look at Keith, he left. Keith followed as they went downstairs.  
Lance was still on videocall. “Is everything okay, you guys?”  
“No, not really,” Keith replied. “Sorry, Lance, we’ll keep in touch.”  
“Sure. Call me if you need it.”  
Keith nodded at the screen, before turning his entire attention to Shiro. He could tell Shiro was shocked by the entire accident. “What happened?”  
“I don’t know.” Shiro sighed. “Siv wanted to wash herself, so I prepared the bath for her… I asked her if she needed some help… Then Sven entered and just… attacked me?”  
“We should call the psychologist,” Keith said. “They may have some triggers we aren’t informed about.”  
He had no idea what could have caused it, but he already saw some children becoming scared of something that happened to them in the past. The best solution in those cases would be avoiding the triggers until they found out the best way to face it.  
“Okay.” Shiro nodded, but he didn’t look reassured. “Things… are getting better, a little… What if I ruined everything…?”  
“No, no.” Keith cupped Shiro’s face in his hands. “If anything, I made a big mistake with Sven. I should have… I don’t know, but not that.”  
They hugged. For a long minute, they just stood there, using the other presence to calm down. When they moved aside, they still looked worried, and they exchanged a little smile. There was a thing they should do. Without speaking, they moved upstairs.  
Sven and Siv were in their room. He was drying her hair, but as soon as he spotted them, his face became harder. He turned down the phone and gripped his sister’s hand.  
“What do you want?” he growled.  
“Apologize,” Keith murmured. “I guess my… past as a soldier made me reacted in an inappropriate way. I didn’t want to hurt you, and I shouldn’t have.”  
Shiro was at his back and he placed a hand on Keith’s shoulder. “I’m not sure what I did to scare you like that, but I’m sorry too,” he said. “If there’s something you don’t like, or don’t want us to do, please tell us. We’ll do everything to avoid it.”  
For an instant, Keith thought Sven would have answered that they wanted to leave, that they didn’t want to stay there with them. Instead, Sven didn’t say anything. He turned on the hair dryer and lowered his head on Siv’s head.  
Keith and Shiro left the room: they were still in the dark, and things didn’t look good.

  
***

  
Shiro parked the car a street far from the school. With a brief “goodbye”, Siv and Sven get out, with their backpacks, and walked away. Shiro waited for them to disappeared over the corner before leaving. He was a little sad the two children preferred walking towards school alone, so their classmate didn’t find out about their new fostering parents.  
In some way, Shiro could understand that both him and Keith were a little bit too famous for their liking, and they wanted to avoid annoying questions. But Shiro guessed for Sven and Siv there was another reason, more tied to the idea to be considered still orphans. They didn’t need parents, not even when they have it.  
Right now, he and Keith couldn’t help but respect their privacy.  
He parked at the Garrison’s and headed to his office, mentally repeating his duty for the day. He opened the door only to find a man sitting down at his desk.  
“Sam! You returned!”  
“Nice to see you, Shiro.”  
They hug.  
“I thought your time with the Olkari won’t end for the next two weeks.”  
“That’s correct, but I can’t wait to present the new technological discovery to the earthling scientific community,” Sam replied. “I have a couple of conference in the next days. Coleen is still there though.”  
“Good for her. I’m pretty interesting about your discovery too. I can’t believe Pidge hid your return from me…”  
“Well, she didn’t know until yesterday. I had to avoid her otherwise she would have spoilers of my conferences.”  
Shiro laughed. “I see.”  
“But tell me about you. Is it true you and Keith adopted children?”  
It wasn’t exactly a secret, but at the same time Shiro wondered why it was a big deal. People had children all the times. “We’re fostering two children,” he answered. “It’s not an adoption yet.”  
“Why not?”  
“Oh, well, we aren’t sure we’re ready yet. But we hope to go there.”  
“And how’s going until now?”  
“It’s hard,” Shiro admitted. “I’m not sure I’m doing the right thing, you know? No handbook for this.”  
“That’s true,” Sam agreed. “But you’re always good with our cadets. They loved you. You have a natural talent for this too.”  
“I don’t know. I like helping the teachers here at the Garrison, but with our own children… They’re younger than our cadets, and they didn’t come to our house following a dream. With cadets, I can understand them. Sven and Siv… not so much.”  
Sam patted Shiro’s back. “No parents even do. Don’t worry.”  
Shiro was about to ask some advices about it, when his datapad rang. It was Keith.  
“See you later,” Sam said, as he left the room before Shiro answered the call.  
“Keith, hi. It’s something wrong?”  
During the week Keith left the house very early, took Black at the Garrison’s and flying to New Daibazaal to work. It didn’t happen often he called, even if they didn’t have the chance to say bye in the morning, so it’s only normal to Shiro to worry.  
“Actually, yes. Not to me,” Keith hurried to add. “We lost the signal of a cargo ship that was supposed to deliver goodies to a distress planet and I was asked to take part of the rescue team, since the area of the lost signal is full of asteroids.”  
Shiro understood the situation immediately. “How long will it takes?”  
“I hope I can be free in a couple of days. But unfortunately….”  
It’d happened before. The first time of Keith’s project with the Blade of Marmora Keith had stayed away for weeks because of his work. Emergency happened all the time. But now…  
“Don’t worry,” Shiro said. “I handle every day a group of cadets. I can handle Sven and Siv by myself for a couple of days.”  
“I didn’t doubt that.” There was a little of regret in his voice. “I’ll let you know if I have more precise news. And call me for everything.”  
“Sure. Love you.”  
“Love you too.”  
As he hung up, Shiro sighed. He would have half of the confidence he showed with Keith. But, after all, it could be for real only a couple of days. And Sven and Siv spend most of their time at school. Things were quieter recently, and Shiro hoped they would become better from now on.  
Nothing bad should happened in two days or less.

  
***

  
“I called your parents.”  
The principal’d said that, and Sven would like to reply he didn’t have any, but of course it wasn’t true anymore. Until the power couple of the universe was fostering him, for the rest of the adults they were Sven’s parents and nothing he could say would change it.  
Sven shrugged. It was not he cared about what they thought of his behavior, and luckily for him Keith was still somewhere in the space, so he had only one to bear. When Shiro reached the principal’s office, Sven caught a glimpse of worry in the other’s eyes, before he lowered his head and refused to look at him.  
“What happened? I mean, at the phone you talked about a fight.”  
“Yes. I’m afraid Sven hit one of his classmate during the class. It started a small fight before the teacher managed to separate them. We didn’t tolerate this kind of behavior here and, unfortunately, I had to say this is not the first time Sven caused some rucks in the class.”  
For a second, Shiro remained silent. “There will be consequences?”  
“I understand you’re fostering him from only a couple of months until now, and we’re almost at the end of the school year. We’re trying to avoid a severe punishment,” the principal said. “But of course we can’t let it slide.”  
“Of course…” Shiro repeated. “Would you mind if I speak a second with my son in private?”  
I’m not your son, Sven thought. It was the first time Shiro said it out loud.  
“Sure. We’re waiting for the other kid’s parents too.”  
Shiro placed a hand on Sven’s shoulder, a silent demand to stand up and follow him outside the principal’s office. The last thing Sven wanted was a lecture from Shiro. Or Shiro trying to be his father, more than usual at least. Still, he had no choice. Shiro lent him to an empty hallway. He stood there, arm crossed. He looked at him, careful. Sven didn’t have the chance to get a mirror, but he could feel his broken lips and a sting of pain from his cheek.  
“What did he say?”  
“What?” Sven blinked. It wasn’t the question he expected.  
Shiro smiled. “Keith punched another cadet at the Garrison once,” he said. “He wasn’t proud of it, and he didn’t try to defend his action, but… He was provoked.”  
Oh, right. Sometimes Sven forgot Keith had been an orphan too. One of the main reasons that made him insufferable. With other adults, Sven could shrug them off because they hadn’t their same history. With Keith and Shiro it was definitely harder.  
But in the end, they’re adults too. Keith wasn’t an orphan anymore and thinking he could actually understand Sven was foolish. And Shiro wasn’t even Keith. He surely wouldn’t believe it, or wouldn’t care.  
“Listen, Sven. I can’t help you if you don’t trust me.”  
Fine, Sven thought. I can’t wait for you to show your true colors. “He told me my sister’s a whore.”  
“Your sister is ten.”  
Sven snorted. That was the point.  
Shiro nodded. “That’s all?”  
“He told me out parents left us because my sister’s a whore.”  
“I see.” Shiro’s face was unreadable. Sven guessed he didn’t believe it after all. No surprise here. “Let’s go back.”  
They returned to the principal’s office. The jerk was there, alongside with both of his parents. Of course the both came for him. Sven shot them a smirk: the jerk’s face was definitely worse than his own.  
“Mister Shirogane, may I introduce to you…” the principal began, but Shiro cut her off.  
“It’s Admiral Shirogane.” He turned to the other adults. “I guess you’re the parents of the other boy.” He didn’t lend the hand to greet them. His gesture was welcomed by an angry shot from the jerk’s father.  
“We are,” he confirmed. “And since you’re in the military, we hope you understand your son’s behavior shouldn’t be tolerated.”  
“Absolutely. I will make sure Sven wouldn’t act like this anymore.” Shiro nodded. Sven didn’t have the time to be disappointed, because Shiro added, “And for the same reason I think you should teach your son the same.”  
“What?” The jerk’s mother exclaimed. “It was not OUR son to hit-”  
“Sven, please.” Shiro interrupted her. “Repeat to them what you told me earlier. The reason you started the fight.”  
Sven didn’t expect this outcome. He couldn’t hold back though. “He told me my parents left us because my sister’s a whore. So I hit him.”  
“My son wouldn’t never…” the jerk’s father began.  
“I didn’t, dad, I swear…”  
“Of course you didn’t, sweetheart…”  
“Oh.” Shiro smirked, and Sven caught the transformation. Until that moment, Sven had only seen the sweet side of Shiro. He and Keith were disgustingly soft with each other. Now Sven could see Admiral Shirogane, the captain of Atlas, in action. “I can’t tolerate anyone calling my daughter a whore, or mocking her because their parents’ death. And I understand very well my son wouldn’t tolerate it too. I don’t approve him hitting his classmate, but at the same I hope you don’t approve your own son calling a ten years old kid a whore.”  
“Yeah, well, no…”  
“Good.” Shiro turned to the principal. “I think we all agree we can talk to our children about a proper behavior regarding their classmate and there won’t be necessary further punishment.”  
The principal appeared surprised. “Yeah, well, I can ask the teacher to assign some supplementary classwork about the entire episode… but that will be all.”  
“Can Sven return to class?”  
“Of course.”  
Shiro didn’t wait another second. He left the room, and Sven followed, realizing the relief that flow inside him. He didn’t care so much about school, but he gained some money from it (thanks to Shiro’s idea). And being expelled would be a pain in the ass.  
“Do not fight with anyone anymore,” were the last words Shiro reserved Sven before letting Sven in class.  
Sven had no problem to nod. He had the feeling nobody else would disturb him, not after knowing who was fostering him and what happened in the principal’s office. And Sven hated himself for being a little happy about it.

  
***

  
For once, Shiro decided to ignore his children’s wish, and went to pick them up after school. What had happened in the morning with the fight had let him a little worried. He didn’t feel wrong for defending Sven, but he hoped it wouldn’t create some more tension between his classmate. So he decided he had to put his foot down and made sure they were his children.  
And he had to make sure the situation would be clear for Keith’s return. Even if it wasn’t Shiro’s fault, he felt guilty it happened in the same week Keith had other problems to take care of. A part of him was worried he wasn’t a good father after all.  
“Why are you here?” It was a question he expected from Sven, but there was more surprise than anger in his words. Shiro’s attention move to Siv, as Sven tried to cover her with his body.  
“Siv! You… Don’t tell me you got in a fight too.” She had a visible bruise on her left check, and a swollen eye.  
“No!” she denied. “I… fell from the stairs.”  
“Yeah.” Sven snorted. “She fought with Paul’s sister.”  
“Well, she said bad thing about you! And only because that idiot of his brother can’t hold two punches.”  
Shiro was amused by Sven looking annoyed by his sister’s behavior, despite the fact she’d acted exactly like him. He looked around and individuated the parents he’d had a discussion in the morning. They were scolding both of their children, and Shiro noted with some proud that both of the children’s face was in a worse state than Sven and Siv’s one. He shouldn’t have been happy about his children to win a fight they weren’t supposed to have in the first place, but he couldn’t help it.  
“Okay, kids, no more fights after today,” he commented. “Let’s go back home to patch your faces.”  
Sven shot him a dark look, then took Siv’s hand and followed Shiro in the car.  
“I could have lied, you know,” Sven said, once they left the school’s parking.  
“Did you?” Shiro asked.  
“No, but…”  
“Then that’s okay,” Shiro cut him. “I want to help you both. Be honest with me and I’ll be on your side. But,” he added, before Siv could say something, “it doesn’t mean you can go around and hit people.”  
Siv crossed her arm. “Can I bring Kosmo to school? I’m pretty sure he can scare people away.”  
Shiro laughed. “Kosmo is pretty easy to buy. It wouldn’t work.”  
“You’re a lot scarier than Kosmo,” Sven commented. “I guess it’s okay if you pick us up from now on…”  
Shiro wasn’t sure he should be happy about being a scary man, but he was surely okay with the idea of waiting for them with the other parents instead staying in the car pretty far from the school. He definitely would need to talk with Keith about the entire accident, and he still wondered how someone (anyone) could call a ten years old a whore, but for now he could sink in the thought of having done something good as parents.  
And he decided to continue the good moments. “Would you like to go eating outside tonight? Like pizza or…” He stopped as he noticed the house’s door wasn’t locked anymore.  
Did that mean…  
“Keith’s back… oh!” Siv stopped and Sven almost dumped into her as he entered in the house.  
“What…” he tried to protest, then he shut his mouth and widened his eyes.  
Keith was indeed back, and in the moment he was at the kitchen’s table. Pity he wasn’t alone: Axca, Zethrid and Ezor sat down next to him, datapad in front of them. Sven and Siv met aliens before, because Earth was an important outpost for the Voltron coalition, but Shiro suspected it was the first time they have the chance to see three of them so close.  
“It was either this or not returning until Sunday,” Keith commented. “Don’t ask.”  
“Okay,” Shiro replied. “I’m just happy you’re here.”  
Zethrid, next to Keith, rolled her eyes. “So there’s your children, chief?” Ezor commented, with bright in her eyes.  
Sven crossed his arm. “No.”  
Keith moved his look to Sven and Siv and only in that moment, seeing the surprise in his face, Shiro remembered the conditions of Siv and Sven’s face. That wasn’t definitely the way he wanted to tell Keith.  
Keith frowned. “What happened?”  
“I fell from the stairs,” Siv and Sven replied at the same time, with Shiro that said, “they fell from the stairs.”  
Everyone else looked at them, perplexed. Keith’s frown deepener. “It looks to me they got into a fight,” Axca commented.  
“And they definitely had it worse,” Ezor commented.  
“You hadn’t see the other one!” Sven replied.  
Zethrid busted our laughing. “They are your children for real.” And then, gesturing at her scarred face, she added, “you know, your father is the one that did this to me.”  
“Oooh,” Siv murmured. She was impressed.  
“First of all, that’s not true,” Keith protested. He was flustered. “Second, you were trying to kill me.”  
“Not to kill you,” Ezor replied. “Just torture you a little.”  
“Okay, that’s enough. Sven, Siv, in you room. Don’t you have homework to do?”  
“Yes, but…” Siv eyed at the three alien women. Even Sven didn’t look so eager to leave the kitchen.  
“Go. Shiro, a word.”  
Shiro just wanted to die.  
Sven and Siv climbed the stairs before them and closed the door of their room. Keith waited for them to reach their bedroom before exploding, “are you teaching them to lie?”  
“No, but… I didn’t expect to explain things in front of your coworkers. I mean, you heard them.”  
Keith sighed. “Unfortunately.” He smiled. “I miss you.”  
“Me too.”  
They sat down on the bed. Shiro told him about the accident and, for all the time, Keith kept his hand on Shiro’s kneel.  
“I’m sorry,” Keith said at last. “I should have been here.”  
“It’s no big deal. Don’t worry.”  
“I fear it was my fault. I reacted bad at Sven’s escape and maybe… this show him…”  
“It wasn’t your fault,” Shiro assured him. “Sven… is very protective of his sister, you know that.”  
“And his sister of him,” Keith added. “Is it wrong if I’m also a little bit proud of them?”  
Shiro laughed. “No, but let’s try to not encourage it. And unfortunately I don’t think Zethrid and Ezor are a good example to follow.”  
“Definitely not.”  
“I bring the children outside while you finish your work and maybe we can eat pizza tonight?”  
“Good idea.”  
When they returned downstairs, they discovered Sven and Siv were back in the kitchen, listening to the other three’s stories. Shiro shivered a little. They meeting Pidge and Matt was bad enough, giving all the stories they had about him and Keith.  
“Is it true you crash your spaceship into a starship to save Shiro?” Siv asked to Keith. Her eyes are brilliant. Sven faked indifference, but he was listening.  
Keith turned to Zethrid. “You know, every day I regret a little more having saved you.”  
“Ouch, it hurts,” she lied, a smart smile on her lips.  
“Plus it isn’t true, you love us, chief,” Ezor added.  
“How did you save her?” Siv intervened. “Did you slash some aliens?”  
“No, he avoided her to fall into a volcano after she kept him hostage,” Axca commented, dully.  
“You kept him hostage?!”  
This was the last stray. “Out. All of you.”  
“But we have work to finish…” Axca protested. He’d realized the mistake she’d made.  
“You’re capable to finish it by yourself.” Keith’s reply didn’t deserve an answer, so Axca nodded. She closed her datapad and stood up.  
“But we have a lot of stories to tell,” Ezor protested.  
“And I want to know about the volcano thing,” Siv added.  
This time, it was Axca to block the other two. “If you don’t stop, I’ll let you my work too.” After some more protested, they left the house.  
Keith took a relief sigh. Shiro placed a hand on Keith’s shoulder. “I’m offended,” he said. “You were never interested in our stories.”  
“Because yours are boring,” Siv replied. “I want to know about the volcano. What did she do? She pointed a gun at you?”  
“I’m still not interested, if it’s better for you,” Sven commented, but it was clearly a lie.  
He exchanged a look with Keith. Things were getting better.  
“Do your homework,” Shiro said. “We can talk later, at dinner. Pizza?” But he bought Siv when he added, “and maybe, maybe, I can tell you about that time Keith slashed Sendak to save Earth.”

  
***

  
The summer holidays were a problem, because Shiro and Keith didn’t know where to leave Siv and Sven when they’re at work. Sure, they could hire a baby-sitter, but they weren’t sure it was a good idea giving they’re still trying to get better with their relationship with the two children.  
So, in the end, they choose this course of action: two weeks on Daibazaal with Krolia, two weeks on Altea with Lance and Allura and, for the entire month of August, Shiro and Keith would take holidays (they have a lot to take since they’re both workaholic).  
Sven and Siv didn’t show particular enthusiasm for the summer break’s program, but it soon changed once their eyes fell on the Black Lion. Each child on Earth heard of the Voltron Lion, and at least once they saw the Voltron Cartoon, but standing in front of the real thing was a different matter.  
Shiro’d made sure no one from the Garrison would be in the hangar as Keith left for Daibazaal: the official excuse was that he didn’t want to embarrass his children, who for sure would be observe by the other for the only reason to be Shiro’s fostering. The real reason was to have a heavy make-up session with Keith before his departure.  
It last until Sven got tired of observing the Black Lion and snored. With a sigh, Shiro let Keith go.  
“We’ll see each other in the week end,” Keith reassure him. They decided to avoid for Shiro to come and go from Earth to Daibazaal, since there would be only two weeks.  
“I know, but I will miss you. You all.”  
“Whatever,” Sven commented.  
Shiro waved his hand for a goodbye as the three of them get on the Black Lion, who was considerate enough to prepare three seats for them.  
“No belt?” Siv commented. She was very attentive of those kind of rules. Black was kind enough to grant her wish, making the belts appearing.  
Keith tool place in his seat and the purple screen appeared. The ceiling of the hangar was opened and he waited for Sven and Siv to sit down before departing. Usually, he used the portal right after his exit from the Earth atmosphere, but since it was Sven and Siv’s first space travel, he decided to wait until they reached the end of the solar system, giving them a brief tour around the other planets.  
Siv’d stopped faking indifference for quite some time, and the journey was no different. She looked around with big eyes and once the Black Lion was stabilized enough, she left his seat to get near to the windows to look better. Keith pointed out for her the name of the planets they were passing.  
“Stop it,” Sven called her from behind. He hadn’t move from his seat and he refused to look around.  
“It’s amazing,” she replied, with a pout.  
“It didn’t matter,” he said. “They’re buying you, don’t you understand? They show you all this cool stuff so you lower your guards.”  
“Ah! So you admit these are cool stuff!”  
Sven blushed. “Okay. I admit it. This is cool. They are cool. But, as I say, it didn’t matter.”  
Keith blinked. Sven wasn’t usually so earnest. And even if Siv was more open recently, she still covered for his brother. Until Keith understood: they were speaking in Norwegian, as they sometime did, knowing people around wouldn’t know the language.  
“If you let them get close, they’ll hurt you. Did you remember-”  
As much as Keith wanted to know why Sven and Siv were so cautious into became friendly with him and Shiro, he believed listening to a conversation he shouldn’t would be a bigger betrayal of their trust. And Keith wanted more for them to understand they could trust him and Shiro. They wouldn’t hurt them.  
“Uhm, guys… I guess I should inform you the Black Lion has a system of automatic translation from every languages Including Norwegian.”  
And he shot them a meaningful look. Siv covered his surprise mouth with his hand. Sven blushed. Hard. His face was completely red that Keith didn’t have the heart to tell him something about the fact he’d just said he found him and Shiro cool.  
Sven crossed his arm and refused to talk in any way. Siv sat back at her seat, once her embarrassment disappeared, but at least she still asked information about the surroundings and she showed enthusiasm once they passed through the portal.  
And she commented, once Keith parked on Daibazaal aircraft spaceport and the got off the Black lion, “woah, there’s a lot of aliens here!”  
“Yep, and one of them is my mother.”  
Krolia was waiting for them and the spaceport exit. Both Sven and Siv knew his mother was Galra, but they still couldn’t hide their surprise once they met her for the first time. Siv had no problem to stare at her with wide eyes and she waited a lot before grabbing her hand. Sven rejected it and Krolia respected his wish.  
“Mom, remember Sven wants to work. So give him everything you have.”  
“You can count on me. And on Kolivan.”  
“Please. I ask for some work, not to be scared for life,” Keith joked.  
“Don’t be mean. He sweetened a lot aging up.”  
“If you said so. I’ll see you for dinner.”  
He greeted the three of them before leaving for the Blade of Marmora headquarters. He couldn’t hide the fact his children were on Daibazaal from his colleagues, especially from Axca, but he made clear (from great displeasure from Ezor and Zethrid) that any Blade that would try to get near them would get extra work and no holidays.  
“I’m sorry for your future son or daughter-in-law,” Ezor commented.  
“Don’t worry, you won’t survive long to see it,” Keith replied.  
“I can’t really tell if you’re joking or not.”  
“Good.”  
The day was extremely long because Keith couldn’t wait to go back home and check how Sven and Siv were managing in an alien planet. Bickering with Ezor and Zehtrid made it tolerable, but he still escaped as soon as he finished his work and rushed to Krolia’s house.  
Sven and Siv were at the table, doing their homework from the summer break. They waved briefly their hands at him. Krolia was arranging the table for dinner.  
“How was the day?” he whispered to her.  
“Good evening to you, too, Keith,” she replied, but she was mocking him. “Don’t worry, everything was fine. They’re good children, they’re just a little bit untrusting, but I don’t feel I can blame them.”  
“Yeah.” Keith shot a look at them from the kitchen. “I was worried about the fact they’re Earthlings. Did they attract… some curiosity? I don’t want them to feel observed by strangers.”  
“Well, Galra know how Earthlings look like. And you being a Paladin of Voltron and the head of the Blade of Marmora help. We are used to Earthlings.”  
“That’s good.” He hoped it would be the same on Altea too.  
“Dinner’s ready!” Krolia announced. Sven and Siv appeared a second later and took their seat. Kroliva joined them soon after. After his retirement by the head of the Blade, Kolivan spent his time writing his memories and making a blog about advices for young cadets, so he wasn’t resting at all and he didn’t look relaxed either.  
He sat next to Krolia, with Siv’s eyes that followed him. After she took the first bit of food and she decided it was edible, she asked, “are you Keith’s grandpa?”  
Krolia tried to hide her laugh under a cough. She failed. Kolivan was serious when he answered, “I sure hope no.”  
“Oh.” She sounded disappointed.  
“My father and my mother both died when I was young,” Krolia said. “They were Blade and the fight against Zarkon too. But I grow up with Kolivan, so he was kind of a big brother to me. A grumpy big brother.”  
“So you’re Keith’s uncle,” Siv decided.  
“I’m not sure I like it,” Kolivan replied.  
“So many family members for an orphan,” Sven commented.  
He noticed too late he talked out loud and pretended to focus on his food. Keith would let it slide, but Krolia didn’t.  
“I left Keith when he was still a baby, and we didn’t meet until he was a big guy,” she said. “So, yeah, after his father’s death, he believed he was all alone. I don’t think finding me again invalidated the years he was actually alone.”  
Sven didn’t answer, but he pressed his lips together. “Why did you leave?” Siv asked. There was a slightly accused tone in her words, and a slightly frown on her face.  
“To protect him,” Krolia answered, with a sweet smile. “The Blue Lion was hidden on Earth and I had to make sure Zarkon wouldn’t find it. And I couldn’t do it remaining on Earth, so I had to leave.”  
“Mom…” Keith began.  
“It’s okay.” She shook her head. “That’s what happened.”  
Sven licked the food out his fork. “You don’t really know about her?”  
“No. I guess dad couldn’t tell me she’s an alien. I wouldn’t have believed him.” His expression fell. “For a long time, I believed she left me because she didn’t care enough about me.”  
Sven lifted his head and look at him straight in the eyes, even if his expression is unreadable. “And you forgave her?” he asked.  
“Well, I understood her motives. The war couldn’t give me back all those years but… I was happy to have her for the rest of my life.” Keith felt Krolia’s hand on his knee, behind the table, and shot them a short smile. He wasn’t lying, and she should know it.  
“You know, those two,” Kolivan intervened. “I left them alone in a mission and they… disappeared, without even warning me of their move. And I was their boss! Like mother, like son.”  
“It was an important mission, and it helped us finding out about Lotor’s plan,” Krolia replied.  
“You should have at least sent me a message.”  
“Oooh, tell me about this mission!” Siv exclaimed.  
Keith smiled as he understood Kolivan was trying his best to deviated the conversation from a private part of their life. Even if Keith had no problem to talk about it with Sven and Siv so they could know him better, he appreciated the fact Kolivan didn’t want to talk about things that could sadden them. Maybe it was true Kolivan was like an uncle to him.  
“Can we talk about the fact that you disappeared for like more than two years and the came back and forgot to tell us you had a half-breed child? Can you understand the shock I had when I meet this small alien that looked like you and had your blade?”  
“Well, since you decided for him to risk his life in the Trial of Marmora, maybe I did well to hide it from you.”  
“You’re right. I shouldn’t have done it, so we wouldn’t never find out about Keith’s heritage.”  
“And you wouldn’t have defeated Zarkon.”  
“Maybe, or maybe not. At least I wouldn’t have dealt with Keith screwing up every mission.”  
“I did only once,” Keith protested. “And it was for saving Shiro.”  
At that point, Sven laughed. It was the first time Keith saw him doing a full heart laugh instead of his little smirk and his snort. Everybody turned at him, Siv included. “Why am I not surprised?” Sven commented, at last.  
“Well, I love him,” Keith said, defensive.  
“You two are embarrassing.” But it was told with some kind of affection than made Keith’s heart beat faster.  
After dinner, he called Shiro immediately to tell him the news. Things with Sven and Siv were actually getting better. But when Shiro answered, he had an expression Keith recognized immediately. He skipped the greetings and asked, “What happened?”  
Shiro sighed. “Today I received a call from the orphanage’s headmaster.”  
Keith froze. For a long second, he feared they wanted to take Sven and Siv from them and he did not dare to speak.  
“They made some work in the port at Sven and Siv’s hometown in Norway,” Shiro explained. “They retrieved a car from the water.” He sighed again. “We have the confirmation that the bodies inside are their parent’s. They’re dead.”  
Keith hold his breath for a second. “It was the most probably hypothesis.”  
“I know. Still, we had to tell them. They… could still have a hope of their parents’ return.”  
“You’re right.”  
Keith closed his eyes. Unwilling, his mind turned back at the day his father’s colleague came to his school, along with the psychologist from the orphanage, to inform him of his father’s dead. It was still one of Keith’s worst day. Keith had no idea how to speak how to tell Sven and Siv without hurting them. And he didn’t want to hurt them in any way.  
“We can wait until I arrive,” Shiro added. “We can tell them together. A couple of days more won’t be a problem, I guess. But they had to know.”  
“I agree.” Keith opened his eyes and nodded. He was glad Shiro understood his pain without even telling him. “We told him together.”  
Things had looked quiet, but now they had to open wounds again and brought everything back in the dark time.

  
***

  
The most important thing Sven learned on Altea was that Lance was loud. Really loud. He basically didn’t stop talking, ever. Queen Allura was fine, and most of the time too occupied to spent time with him or Siv, but apparently Lance had sworn to make Sven’s life miserable because he didn’t stop pestering him.  
But, Sven had to admit, Lance’s blabbering about his children or his wife or his time as Paladin, as much as he spoke about Keith and Shiro, really distracted Sven for thinking about his parents’ death. It was easy not thinking when your mind is filled with someone else’s thoughts.  
Siv looked happier too. Romelle accompanied her around Altea and she also managed to spent a lot of time playing with the space mouse. She always loved animals.  
That was it: life with Keith and Shiro wasn’t bad. They were good people, or at least until now they didn’t give Sven a reason to think otherwise. And they’re two fucking superheroes with a friendship with an alien queen, a space dog and the abilities of pilot giant robots (Lance assured him they would show them how they formed Voltron). It wasn’t bad.  
Sven knew Siv was thinking the same, but she was considerate enough to not tell him directly. Sven was too used to consider only one possibilities that the idea of being wrong this time was actually scared. Luckily for him, he still had a couple of days before Keith and Shiro arrived and took them for their space holiday. Still a couple of days to return to his usual self.  
“Sven! Here you are!”  
Sven groaned. He managed to escape from Lance’s attention for a straight hour. Definitely too much time. “Come on, you won’t miss it.”  
“Yeah, I’m sure.”  
Lance didn’t catch the sarcasm, or maybe doesn’t care (he kept telling him he looked a lot like Keith). He took Sven’s hand and dragged him into the hangar. The queen was there too, and Siv and Coran.  
“Just in time,” she comments.  
The ceiling was opened and a second later, the green and the yellow lions landed in front of them. Sven didn’t do any effort to contain his surprise, and Siv was pretty excited. They had already flying in Black, but seeing all the lions together was pretty cool too.  
They’d met Pidge, because she lived on Earth, but they had no idea about the other Paladin. They watched as the adults greeted themselves.  
“Hunk, you don’t bring Shay too?” Lance asked.  
“She’ll arrive later. I want to spent some time with you guys alone.”  
“Oww, you’re sweet.”  
“We don’t expect you until a couple of days,” the queen commented.  
“Yeah, well,” Pidge wicked at him, “we decided to anticipate Keith and Shiro a little.” And she tilted her head towards Sven and Siv. “It’s definitely time for someone to tell these children the truth about their parents.”  
“Oh, so they are Keith and Shiro’s children?” Hunk kneeled down. “Nice to meet you.”  
Sven was about to tell them they’re not anyone children yet, but Siv’s eyes glow with expectation. “You had stories about Keith and Shiro? Stories they won’t tell us?”  
“Oh, you can bet on it,” Pidge smirked. “Wait for dinner and we’ll tell you everything.”  
It turned out, they were all sappy stories. Point was, Siv was expecting something about battles and dangerous, and there was undoubtedly something like that in the stories, but Keith and Shiro were just so sweet and tender one to another that everything they touched turned out into the plot of a romance.  
Did we tell you that time Keith refused to form Voltron because Shiro was gone?  
Did we tell you that time Shiro almost threw away a very important alliance because of Keith?  
Did we tell you that time Keith brought Shiro back to life with the force of his love?  
Did we tell you that time Shiro had a gay panic in front of Keith?  
They were all like that. If Sven hadn’t see the scary side of both Keith and Shiro, he wouldn’t have believed they were actually two paladins of Voltron.  
Siv snorted. “Your stories are boring.”  
“Oh, well, complain with Keith and Shiro for that,” Lance said. “And they dare to tell me I was exaggerating when I hired the MFE pilots to asking Allura’s hand in the sky.”  
Pidge rolled her eyes at him, and he shot a look back, daring her to speak.  
“Well, they’re a little sappy,” Allura admitted, with a big smile. “But I suppose you can be, when you managed to keep finding each other against all the odd and the universe.”  
“Yeah, it looks like a fucking fantasy love story,” Sven comments.  
“It really is,” Hunk nodded.  
“The important thing,” Allura continued, “is that they managed to remain good people as they kept protecting the people they loved. You two also can count on it. They’ll reach the end of the universe for you.”  
Maybe. Or maybe not. After all, Shiro and Keith were fostering Sven and Siv for only six months.

  
***

  
In the dark of the room, lightened only by Keith’s datapad, Keith took a second to remember the Castle of Lions wasn’t anymore the empty warship it used to, and another second to recognize Sven’s figure and put down the knife.  
Sven didn’t look amused. “Woa, slow down.”  
“Sorry. Hold habits.” He smiled. “Do you need something?”  
Sven shrugged. “I couldn’t sleep, so…”  
Keith looked at him, as he approached his table. Since their arrival on Altea, Keith noticed a small change of Sven’s behavior. He especially didn’t miss the fact Sven hadn’t his excitement in seeing Voltron. Lance swore he didn’t do anything, and Krolia himself reassured him that probably Sven and Siv were ending their grieving period for their parents’ death. Still, Keith wondered if he could do more.  
“You aren’t sleeping too,” Sven pointed out.  
“Going in ten minutes. I really have to finish this report for today and then, hopefully, I’ll be on holiday for a while.”  
“Cool.”  
Keith checked it back and sent it to Axca. He closed the datapad, but made no sign of movements. Until Sven was there, Keith wasn’t sure how to act.  
“You take care of a lot of orphan,” Sven said.  
“I do. It’s one part of my job.”  
“It’s because you were an orphan too?”  
“Probably. But more than that, I want to help people.”  
Sven nodded. Keith understood he wanted to tell him something, or ask something, but he wasn’t sure how to do. For that, Keith was grateful he learned to read things from Shiro.  
“What is it? You can tell me.”  
Sven looked up straight in his eyes. “I killed my mom and dad.”  
“Sorry?” Keith blinked.  
“I was angry. I told them that we didn’t need them and that they couldn’t return if they want. And they didn’t.”  
For a long second, Keith stared. Then he stood up, moved, and hugged Sven. He didn’t think, didn’t stop to wait for a reaction, just grabbed his back and kept him as much near his chest as possible. He caressed the back of his head slowly.  
“It wasn’t your fault. It was an accident,” Keith said, and repeated, once he realized Sven was crying against him. He was fourteen, and he just need a hand in his life too.  
At a certain point, Sven moved away. He pushed Keith back, but it wasn’t an angry gesture. He sniffed and washed his face with the back of his hand.  
“Feeling better?” Keith asked. Sven nodded, not looking at him. “Good. Let’s go to bed now.”  
Sven and Siv’s room was next to Keith’s one, so first Keith put his head inside to tell Shiro he was coming, only to find a sleeping Siv on the bed, using one of Shiro’s arm as a pillow. Once Shiro’s eyes fall on Sven, he moved aside.  
“She came here searching for you and then she decided to wait here and…”  
“It’s okay,” Sven interrupted him.  
“Oh. Good. Good.” Shiro relaxed. “You can bring her back in your room if you want.”  
“Why don’t you sleep here too?” Keith proposed. “So you won’t risk to wake up Siv.”  
Sven looked surprised. He blinked a couple of time, then bit his bottom lips. “You won’t be gross, won’t you?”  
“We aren’t going to have sex with you two in our bed,” Keith replied. Shiro’s entire face became red.  
“You’re gross because you’re disgusting sappy,” Sven replied, and then shudder. “It can’t be helped.” And, without adding anything, he climbed the bed and lied down next to Siv, taking her hand in his.  
Shiro looked he was almost in tear. Keith took of the jacket and joined them on the other side, with the two children between them. “We aren’t so sappy,” he commented. Shiro raised an eyebrow. “Okay, maybe a little bit.”  
Keith passed his hand over the pillow so he could take Shiro’s one without disturbing the children. Shiro whispered at the light to turn a little bit off, so that there was still light enough to permit them to look at the children. Only when they were sure the children were sleeping, Shiro nodded at Keith and stood up.  
“What is it?” Keith answered as they were out of the room.  
“Siv talked a little to me earlier,” Shiro said. “From what I understand, it is possible one of her previous adoptive parent tried to abuse her. It didn’t happen, but it made them… a little bit over the edge. Sven especially.”  
“I’m gonna murder him,” Keith stated.  
“Yeah, that was my first reaction too.”  
“It explained the all bathroom incident,” Keith commented. “We should speak with the psychologist for it. Try to help them in any way.”  
“I agree.”  
Keith looked at Shiro. He wondered if he regretted having adopted Sven and Siv and not a child with less problem. Keith had wanted them. Had wanted to help them. Shiro just went along with it.  
“You know,” Shiro returned in the room. “There was a time I’m just grateful to wake up every morning with you next to me. But now… I think I want more.”  
“Wake up every morning with this?” Keith smiled. “They’re going to grow up, and we’ll get older.”  
“Let me enjoy this until it last.”

  
***

  
They woke up in the morning into a very big hug together. Siv had moved in some way on the other side, and she was curled against Keith and Sven’s arm were spread wide, one of them against Shiro’s chest. They are sweet. The sweetest thing Shiro saw, save maybe for Keith alone.  
“You’re right,” Keith murmured. “This is how I wanna wake up for the rest of my life.”  
Shiro smiled and leaned a hand to caress Keith’s cheeks. “But they need more friends. Friend of their age. I want our house full of children.”  
Keith chuckles. “That won’t be easy.” Siv moaned something and curled more against him.  
“How do you make friends?” Shiro asked.  
“I jumped on a Blue Lion and ended up into a planetarium war.”  
“This isn’t helping.”  
“Afraid not.”  
Sven hid his head under the pillow. “I may have an idea,” Shiro said. “You talked about that international school that will be open in a couple of months, right?”  
“You mean the interplanetarian school? The one for children of all planet in the same solar system?”  
“That one. We can subscribe Sven and Siv too, right? It isn’t forbidden.”  
“Not really… the only condition is to live in one of the planet around, and Daibazaal is one of them, so I supposed that it counts…” Keith murmurs. “But why?”  
“A fresh start may help them,” Shiro explains. “They had to mourn their parents and then faced with the orphanage and everything… Maybe it’s time to start over.”  
Keith brushed lightly Siv’s hair. “If for them is okay, I don’t have problem. But what about you? It won’t be easy from Earth…”  
“Well, it’s some time Sam is organizing a scientific expedition around the other galaxies. He asked me to join him. I refused at first because of the Garrison’s work, but I really won’t mind returning back in space.”  
Keith’s eyes widened. “That will be so good.”  
Shiro smiled. They dreamed about exploring space, together. At that time, Shiro was with someone else and Keith was just a child from the desert. They went so far and Shiro wouldn’t regret a day of it anymore. He leaned forward to kiss him.  
“Oww. Can you stop to be gross at least in the earlier morning?” Sven complained.  
“Sorry, kid, but no,” Shiro joked. “It’s your fault for sleeping in our bed.”  
“A mistake I won’t do again.” Still, he didn’t do any move to get away, so Shiro took it as a permission first to kiss Keith again, then to lie down next to him and pass an arm around him. Sven scoffed and he just closed his eyes again. Siv blinked a couple of time before pressing herself more against Keith.  
“Sven, Siv,” Keith called. “In two months, our fostering period will end.”  
“So?”  
“Are you okay with us asking for a definitive adoption and move to live in the space?”  
Shiro felt Sven freezing against him. Siv opened her eyes and her expression was a little lost. Keith placed his hand on her side. She took Sven’s hand.  
“If we say yes, can we sleep a little more?” he commented, annoyed.  
“Not before I kiss you,” Shiro replied, and he trapped Sven more with his prosthetic hand.  
“No, stop, you’re gross!”  
Siv laughed and so did Keith, while Sven, still blocked in Shiro’s grasp, tried to hit them with a pillow. Men, they were cute. All of them!

  
***

  
Pillion was a very popular sport in that side of the galaxy. Unlike most Galra sport, he was the least dangerous so a lot of students from the Bootes School practiced it. Both Keith and Shiro didn’t complain when Sven had asked to do it too. He had friends now, and physical activity it was good.  
So, every Friday, Keith returned first to his mission to pick up Sven. He avoided coming with the Black lion because it was a little bit a show off, even if most parents knew he was a Paladin of Voltron.  
Sven was waiting for him at the field’s exit, the backpack on his shoulder. As he saw Keith, he stood up and walked towards him.  
“Ehi, Sven!” an altean child called for him, and Sven stopped. “Do you want to come tonight at my house? Swimming pool party!”  
“I’m sorry, I can’t,” he answered. “It’s my father’s birthday and I promised to be at home.”  
Keith’s heart missed a beat, and he froze on the spot.  
“Oh, it sucks.”  
“Next time, okay?”  
“Okay. See you next week!”  
Sven reached Keith and frowned. “What?”  
“Oh, I… Uhm, nothing. Let’s go.”  
So he didn’t even notice what he said? Because surely Keith did! And he couln’t stop thinking about it for the entire journey back home.  
He parked the pod in the yard and let Sven going home. He found Shiro in the kitchen, making dinner.  
“It’s your birthday, you should be the guest at your own party,” he points out.  
“It’s my first birthday with the kids, I want to make something special.” Shiro placed the tray on the oven and stood up to face him. They didn’t managed to enjoy Keith’s birthday because they were busy with the transfer and everything, so Keith understood why this time Shiro wanted to do a family birthday.  
He smirked. “Good, because I have something for you to make today really special.”  
“Oh? My birthday present?” With a smart smile, Shiro got near and trapped Keith against the wall of the kitchen. “Can I have it now?”  
“Not this,” Keith laughed as Shiro kissed his neck, but he didn’t do any move to get away. “Well, maybe this one too, but no.” He brushed his check against Shiro’s and whispered in his ear, “today Sven called you his father.”  
Shiro froze, lips still on Keith’s neck and his big hands on his side. He took a deep breath. “For real?” he asked, serious, as he pushed away a little. Keith nodded and he watched as Shiro’s eyes became wet. He took off the glasses and brushed it with two fingers.  
“I… I wasn’t sure it would happen. You know, Sven and Siv remembered well their parents and I don’t want them to forget…” he blabbered. “I would be okay for them just to consider us their family… this is…”  
“Happy birthday,” Keith said.  
Shiro hugged him. “Thank you.”  
“For what?”  
“For this. For everything.”  
“It’s all your, Shiro.” Years later, there weren’t any doubts in Keith’s mind that his life without Shiro would be a lot different.  
Sven entered in the kitchen. “Is dinner ready? Oh my God, not here too, please.”  
Keith and Shiro moved away, embarrassed. They tried to keep the PDA a little lower, but sometime they couldn’t help it. Shiro coughed. “Five minutes,” he said.  
“Okay.” Sven threw them a last disapproving look before leaving.  
Shiro and Keith exchanged an amused smile and moved to set the table. Sven and Siv returned five minutes later and dinner proceeded smoothly. Siv was always more than happy to tell them what she learned at school, especially because it was something about alien cultures that she wasn’t able to have on Earth. Sven was quieter, but he liked to remark when his sister did or said something stupid and, by response, he got sass by Shiro. Keith just observed them, looking at the family he wouldn’t expect to have, and have instead.  
“Before the cake,” Sven began, “we have something for you.” Siv lifted his t-shirt a little to reveal a small birthday present, a small square box with a white and black ribbon.  
Shiro was again on the verge of tears. “For me?” He took the small package as it was something precious and fragile. He opened it to reveal a small glass orb with a holographic reproduction of the Earth and the moon inside.  
“It’s beautiful, thank you.”  
Keith recognized it: it was part of a collection of the planets of the Voltron coalition, making by the Olkarian for the fifth anniversary of the end of the war. Shiro had the entire collection on the Atlas, but since it was a present for his position as an Admiral, he never brought it home and he didn’t even consider the collection his property, but he still loved it. Now he had his own piece.  
“How do you manage to buy one?” Keith asked. They weren’t easy to find anymore, and they weren’t cheaper.  
“Duh. On internet.”  
“And how do you manage to buy things online?”  
“Grandma helped us,” Siv said, with an innocent expression.  
Keith and Shiro exchanged a look. They weren’t informed of any remaining relatives of them, let aside a grandmother. Keith immediately felt a little guilty, and he was sure Shiro was feeling the same, especially because he had grown up with his grandfather.  
Sven freed them from their embarrassment. “She meant Krolia.”  
Oh. Oh. Keith had just the time to realize it and thinking about what his mother would react being called a grandmother, that Shiro was crying. He wasn’t even try to hide it anymore. He stood up and hug them, with Sven that this time didn’t even try to look annoyed. Shiro sniffed and leaned a hand in Keith’s direction, to order him to join their group hug. Something Keith was more than happy to oblige, putting both of his arm around the children until Shiro’s shoulder.  
“I love you. I love you all,” murmured Shiro.  
And then, in a whisper, Siv said, “we love you too, dads.”


	5. Free day - Sheith adopt Kitbull

From the leader of Voltron and the Captain of the Atlas it is understandable expecting they can take care of themselves.

They can’t.

Sure, they can kill a man, they can command an army and win a war. They can survive if the situation requires it. But definitely they don’t have basic human skill. Like, for example, doing the shopping.

Shiro is used to the Garrison’s canteen for years he hasn’t needed to actually cook. He doesn’t know how much things buy, the expiry date or how to organize a simple dinner. Those things make him anxious. He spends hours preparing a list of products to buy and most of the time he forgets it at home before heading to the market. It results of him buying too much or too little, and definitely not what the put on the list.

Keith, on the other side, hates lists. He lived in the desert, alone, for one year, surviving with small cans and what he found around. He used to eat the same thing for days and he doesn’t really mind: just go to the market and grab what it looks edible. It results in him buying things they don’t get along well and that are impossible to cook together.

It’s not like they don’t like eating. They just don’t like much the idea of buying things to eat. It’s fortunate from their side they both have a job that guarantees them other people will take care of the shopping for them.

But, the few moments they manage to spent together in their house, are dramatic for that point of view.

Like now. Keith refuses to bring the list Shiro made for him and forgets to buy the milk. And Shiro needs the milk for the dish he’s cooking.

“Go buy it.”

“It’s late. Stores are closing.”

“First of all, we have 24/h market. Second, you have a space wolf that can teleporter.”

“Can’t you make something else that doesn’t need milk?”

“No.”

Keith tries to throw at him his puppy face, but Shiro crosses his arm and decides to resist. Changing the menu of the evening will result in changing the menu of the entire week and this is unacceptable. With a sigh, Keith surrenders to his destiny. He grabs his jacket and goes outside, calling for Kosmo (he became too big for staying in the house). Shiro returns in the kitchen and starts preparing the rest of the ingredients.

Half an hour later, Keith isn’t returned yet. Shiro frowns: he isn't worried about Keith’s well-being because he can handle himself, more about the fact he’s probably buying the entire supermarket but the milk. So, as he hears the familiar wolf’s bark, he approaches the front door with wariness.

It turns out he’s right.

“Look what I found!”

Keith is kneeling down and next to him there is a scarred pit-bull. A very enthusiastic pit-bull, at least from the way it wags his tail and licks Keith’s face, two paws placed on Keith’s chest to stand up. Keith is rubbing its head and murmurs, “good boy.”

Now. Keith loves dogs, that much is clear. He literally adopted and tamed a space wolf. And dogs love him back.

Shiro… not so much. It’s not like he doesn’t like dogs. They’re cute. They’re puppies and they follow you around and love you unconditionally. Some of them are even beautiful looking. But he never manages to connect to them, not as Keith does. It goes for every animal. He once had a golden fish, and it died.

“It’s cute, isn’t it?” Keith says, and smiles, and Shiro really wants to tell him that they aren’t going to adopt another dog because Kosmo already is big trouble alone, but he doesn’t have the courage.

“Uhm, well… can you explain how you buying milk ends up in you bringing a pit-bull at home?”

Keith frowns. “Pit-bull are good dogs.”

“I’m pretty sure of it. I just miss their connection with the milk.”

Meanwhile, the pit-bull is running around Keith, barking, and then jumps on him and licks him again. Shiro is definitely started to be jealous.

“Okay, well. I went to the store, the big one near the street to the Garrison. But there were a lot of people, so I thought that maybe the grocery shop in Midson Square was still opened. It’s small, but it should have milk. So I got there and it was opened, but then Kosmo noticed them,” and at the same time Keith squeezes the pit bull's face, “and they played together and then I just couldn’t let them go.”

Shiro doesn’t say anything, but now he understands why Lance insists so much to call him a Disney princess.

“The owner of the shop said they’re stray, and I looked at them and I decided I had to pick them. I mean, look at him!”

He still squeezes the pit bull's face and it earns him another lick.

Something clicks inside Shiro’s mind. “Them?”

“Them,” Keith confirms. “The shop’s owner said they’re inseparable.”

He points out at the pocket of his jacket. Shiro kneels down and squints his eyes to look better. There are two strange fluffy triangles coming out from it. Shiro touches one of it with his prosthetic hand and something rushes outside and attacks his finger before disappearing into Keith’s lap.

Keith laughs. “Don’t scare him.”

Shiro observes better and he understands. It’s a cat. A skinny, completely black cat. It looks as Shiro as it’s ready to murder him, but as soon as Keith caresses his head it purrs a little and rubs his head against Keith’s fingers. The pit-bull head-butts Keith’s side, reclaiming his attention.

“Here.”

Keith sweeps the cat and places it gently on Shiro’s hand, before turning and scratch the pit bull’s belly. Shiro keeps his metallic hand completely still. The cat is small, it looks even smaller in his palm. It turns around, sniffing the palm of Shiro’s hand until it decides it can trust it to be safe enough and starts exploring the rest of the floating arm, with prudence. Shiro puts near one of his human fingers and the cat sniffs him before giving him a little lick.

Okay. It’s cute. They are both cute.

He looks up and meets Keith’s smart smile. He’s condemned, because now there is no way to find an excuse for not keeping them. He regrets all the times he called Keith ‘kitten’ in bed. All of them, and they’re not few.

So he changes the subject.

“What about the milk?”

“Oh. Well… I kinda forgot?”

Shiro lifts an eyebrow, unimpressed, and that’s all it takes for Keith to understand. He stands up, much with the pit bull's annoyance, and heads out. Kosmo is waiting already for him and they disappear with a small pop. Shiro sighs.

The black cat is still on his arm, studying the way to jump from it to Shiro’s shoulder. The pit-bull, noticing only Shiro remains in the room, stands up and sits down in front to him, tongue out and wagging his tail. There’s nothing else Shiro can do but to rub its head.

As his fingers pass through the short fur, it’s even easier to notice the scars that cover the dog’s body. They seem healed, but Shiro wonders if the dog itself is. Shiro is informed that, after Sendak’s war, Earth went through another period of assessment. The numerous aliens that came from the Voltron coalition did help, but small criminals still erupt from time to time. Dogfights are just a consequence of it, and a small one.

“You had it rough, eh, buddy.” Shiro pats gently his back and smiles. “Don’t worry, Keith will take good care of you.”

In the meantime, the cat tries the jump and it results in it hanging up at Shiro’s t-shirt with the forearm, nails striking into it. It meows loudly. Shiro laughs and grabs it to put it down on the ground. He returns in the kitchen, the dog and the cat follow him and he has to admit, it’s funnier having them around. They both try to stick their nose in everything Shiro is doing and the results are usually catastrophic for them. The pit-bull makes an entire pile of stoves falling and the cat ends up throwing flour everywhere.

When Keith returns, an hour later, he finds Shiro (with clothes changed) in the bathroom, trying to clean a very angry black cat from some pastry that remained stuck in one of its paws, while the pit-bull observes everything carefully from the door. As soon as he sees Keith, he jumps on him. Keith laughs and tickles its ears.

“A little help?” Shiro pleas, as the cat grabs the washbasin and doesn’t let it go.

“Oh, poor boy,” Keith murmurs and Shiro is annoyed he isn’t addressing him. Keith rubs slowly the cat’s back. He takes a small towel and places it upon the cat, using it to wrap the small body entirely. The cat meows a little and Keith rubs its nose. “Here, kitty, kitty.”

Shiro looks at himself and at his wet pants and he realizes he needs a change of clothes. Again. He looks at Keith with a disapproving look, but Keith is too busy cuddling the cat to notice it. And he’s too cute for Shiro to be actually angry at him, with that half soft smile on his face. He shrugs and leaves the bathroom for the bedroom.

Keith moves in the kitchen as Shiro ends to chance, so Shiro reaches him there. And frowns at the number of packages that occupied the living room. Well, at least there aren’t any more animals.

“The animal shop was opened,” Keith informs him, “so I had to buy something.”

“Something doesn’t mean all the shop,” Shiro replies, an eyebrow lifted.

“It’s not so much,” Keith defends himself. “Food, dog’s basket, some toys… That’s it. Oh, and brush for brushing them, and some products for the bath.”

Shiro isn’t sure that ‘that’s it’ is the correct expression. “You don’t buy so much for Kosmo,” he points out.

“Kosmo grew up in a Space Whale when not even mom and I had something other than the ground to sleep on,” Keith replies. “He doesn’t enjoy the conveniences. He teletransports away the only time I tried to bring him to the veterinary.”

“Well, they don’t expect space wolf to be domesticated, you know.”

Keith nods, and there is a small, proud smile on his face. “I know. And he doesn’t even play fetch.”

He throws the ball he has in hand in the living room and both the dog and the cat rushes towards it, almost crashing against the furniture in the meantime. The dog is the first one to reach it. With the ball in its mouth, he returns proudly to Keith and let the ball falls in Keith’s lap. Keith awards him of a small caress on his head.

“Good boy.”

“Keith,” Shiro calls.

“What?”

“The milk.”

He doesn’t have to add anything. Keith stands up and for the third time he leaves the house with the help of Kosmo’s teletransportation powers. Shiro sighs. The dog is looking at him with expectation; it pushes the ball near Shiro with its nose.

“Already spoiled, aren’t you?”

Shiro definitely doesn’t want to think about how much Keith can spoil a child, because thinking about Keith with a child is too much. He is already too cute with only a puppy. Well, three at the moment.

Shiro throws the ball, causing another run, and in the meantime he puts in order all the things Keith bought. He placed the food and the water in the two bowls and finally both dog and cat look too hungry to play again. The cat sniffs the food before deciding it’s edible, while the dog is sweeping everything with his big mouth. Shiro chuckles at their difference and then decided to put their baskets in the bedroom.

Once he goes back in the kitchen, Keith is back. With two pizza in his arms, but no milk.

“I give up, okay?”

That’s all the explanation Shiro gets and he can’t even manage to be angry about it. He shakes his head and kisses Keith’s forehead, as he pouts.

“You’re washing the dish,” he informs him.

Keith is about to answer back, but he stops. He probably understands he deserves it.

They eat the pizza in the living room, on the sofa and directly from the box, as they watched a romance movies from the holo-television (Keith can bear the sight of Shiro’s sappy movies for once, and he doesn’t complain about it either).

Keith let the pit-bull eating the remaining of the pizza and the cat licking his dirty fingers. Satisfied, the dog curls on the sofa next to Keith, its head placed on Keith’s leg. The cat stretches against the dog’s lap and starts licking itself.

“We should name them,” Shiro says.

“Nah,” Keith replies. He leans against Shiro’s side, the head lands on Shiro’s shoulder. “They have names. Kit and Bull. Otherwise, we shall wait for them to give their names.”

Shiro takes a while to get the pun. “Okay. I’ll call Hunk and ask him to name them.”

Keith emitters a sounds half annoyed half amused. Shiro wraps his human arm around his shoulder, so he can brush the back of his neck and his long black hair, now freed by the ponytail. He doesn’t notice Keith falls asleep until the movie ends.

He smiles softly and places a small kiss on Keith’s head. He doesn’t want to move him, so he just stays there, feeling his low breath against the chest. In the silence of the room, now that Shiro turns off the holo-tv, the purrs of the cat are audible too. Shiro moves the head a little too see it: it’s curled up entirely against the dog’s body.

The contrast between them is remarkable. The cat is dark and small, a little grumpy, while the dog is white and big, and friendly, still they love each other. Revelation hits Shiro as his eyes pass on the dog’s scars and he finally realizes why Keith can’t let them go.

“God. They are us.”


End file.
